MUZAFFARABAD: Health workers were scrambling Tuesday to manage a mounting health crisis nearly two weeks after massive flooding engulfed much of Kashmir, where they are treating cases of diarrhea, skin allergies and fungus as they hope the stagnant waters do not create conditions for more serious disease outbreaks.

Countless bloated livestock carcasses were floating across the waterlogged Himalayan region. Many residents, warned by experts to avoid the floodwaters, were rationing water bottles brought by aid workers every few days.

The flooding has hit more than 3,000 villages in both the Kashmir and Punjab regions, where at least 328 people have died and 505,254 have been rescued.

New flooding overnight inundated even more villages in eastern Punjab province and were moving toward the southern Sindh province, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

“The rescue and relief efforts are continuing and in full swing,” the authority said in a statement, assuring that food, tents and blankets were being distributed. But many flood victims complained that they were still waiting for help.

On the other hand, news channels showed images of police swinging batons as hundreds of flood-affected people attacked trucks and snatched food in the Jhang district of Punjab.

Doctors have treated at least 123,020 patients in flood-hit areas, according to NDMA.

PM assures complete rehabilitation of Muzaffargarh flood victims

During his visit to Muzaffargarh, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said government would continue to provide assistance to the flood affected people for enabling them stand on their own feet.

“I can feel the pain and suffering [the] people are going through and government will not leave [them] alone in these testing times,” he said while addressing a gathering at a relief camp.

The premier said that flood had forced people to leave their homes. The government will perform its duty with full responsibility to provide relief to the people and to alleviate their sufferings, he said.

PM Nawaz said that the government and the whole nation share the grief and sufferings of the affected people.

The prime minister also visited relief camps where he was briefed about the problems being faced by the victims.

Provincial cabinet, MPAs from Punjab to contribute their one month salary for flood relief

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif directed the provincial Cabinet Committee on Flood Relief to take all possible steps for immediate resolution of complaints of flood victims.

In this regard, medical facilities including administering of polio drop and vaccination for measles should be ensured, a report published by Radio Pakistan quoted Shahbaz Sharif as saying.

Chief Minister's Fund for Flood relief has also been established to provide assistance for the flood affected people in Punjab.

"Provincial cabinet and the PML-N members of Punjab Assembly will contribute their one month salary to the fund," the report said.

Rescue operation in full swing, says NDMA

Ahmad Kamal, spokesperson for NDMA has said that rescue and relief efforts were continuing and in full swing in the calamity hit areas of Punjab.

Talking to Radio Pakistan, Kamal said that 20.4 million people have been affected by recent floods in 38 districts of Punjab.

He said that the floods have affected 23 districts in Punjab, 10 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and five in Gilgit Baltistan.

NDMA has so far provided 20,000 tents, 10,000 plastic mats, 20,000 blankets, 471,000 aqua tablets, 30 mobile filtration plants, 31 boats and 100 life jackets to Punjab, Kamal said.

Moreover, 3,000 tents, 1,000 blankets and 1,500 plastic mats were provided for assistance in AJK, he added.

He said that National Emergency Operation Centre at NDMA was monitoring flood situation round the clock and was in regular coordination with Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA).

Both federal and provincial governments were ensuring their best possible measures to save life and property of people and provide relief to the victims, the NDMA spokersperson said.