KARACHI: Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Saturday presented to the World Bank a US$1.1 billion rescue and rehabilitation plan for the people severely affected by the unprecedented torrential rains and flash floods across the province.

At a meeting with a high-power WB delegation, led by its Regional Vice President for South Asia Martin Raiser, he said that out of 140,914 square kilometre area of the province, the heavy rains/floods had inundated 15.39 per cent or 21,691.7 sq km and out of 66,549 populated area, 18.8pc or 12,541.6 sq km had been submerged.

“Such a magnitude of the devastation is not only unprecedented, but will cost billions of rupees to rehabilitate the people, their agriculture, infrastructure and to create a source of income for the poorest of the poor,” he told the delegation.

The meeting, held at the CM House, was attended by WB Senior Operations Officer Ewa Sobczynska, Country Director Najy Benhassine, Operations Manager Gailius J. Draugelis and others.

The CM was assisted by his cabinet members, Dr Azra Pechuho, Nasir Shah, and Zia Abbas Shah, Advisors Manzoor Wassan, Murtaza Wahab and Rasool Bux Chandio, Special Assistant Haris Gazdar, Chief Secretary Sohail Rajput, Chairman P&D Hassan Naqvi, and concerned provincial secretaries.

The WB South Asian chief said that he had visited Dadu, Jamshoro and other areas and had never seen such a flood situation and humanitarian crisis, assuring the provincial government that the donor agency would play its due role to support the provincial government to steer its affected people from the crisis.

Housing sector

The chief minister told the delegation that the floods had collapsed 1.7 million houses that needed to be constructed after dewatering villages and towns, adding that the construction of such a large number of houses would cost at least $500m.

The World Bank South Asian chief said that his experts and the concerned officers of the Sindh government would sit together and prepare a project along with its cost, time, and technology of construction so that the project could be sent to the bank authorities for approval.

Rehabilitation of irrigation network

Murad Ali Shah said that the floods and heavy rains had damaged dams, spillways and their allied structure, barrage head works, canals, channels, drains, flood protection bunds, building structures, and tube wells and pumps.

“According to the initial assessment, the rehabilitation of the irrigation network will cost around Rs94.7 billion,” he added. Mr Shah urged the World Bank to re-appropriate or provide at least $250m so that the irrigation network could be repaired and restored, otherwise not only agro-economy would suffer, but the people engaged in the agriculture sector would collapse. The world bank chief asked the chief minister to submit the proposal for their approval.

Water supply and drainage

The chief minister told the WB South Asian head that 23 districts had been affected.

Mr Shah said that the provincial government wanted to start work on the water supply and drainage schemes as soon as the water was pumped out of the town and villages.

The WB official asked the chief minister to submit a working paper for consideration.

At this, Chairman P&D Hassan Naqvi said that the papers were ready, and he would submit them.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2022