• Committee formed on prime minister’s directives reviews national rainy season preparedness
• Warns shrinking glaciers and drought could threaten food security

ISLAMABAD:The Emergency Response Committee (ERC) on Friday stressed the importance of proactive planning and seamless inter-agency coordination to ensure the timely implementation of preparedness measures and minimise the impact of disasters during the monsoon season.

Following directives issued by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the ERC was constituted after a meeting on early warning systems and monsoon preparedness chaired by the prime minister on July 1.

The committee has been mandated to oversee national preparedness and emergency response coordination throughout the 2026 monsoon season. It comprises the federal ministers for planning, development and special initiatives (convener), climate change and environmental coordination, communications, power, water resources, national food security and research, information, and information technology and telecommunication.

The body also includes the secretaries of the respective ministries, the chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), and the chairman of the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda). As notified by the Prime Minister’s Office, the NDMA will serve as the committee’s secretariat.

The committee held its inaugural meeting at the NDMA headquarters on Friday. The inaugural meeting, convened via video link by Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal, was attended by Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination Musadik Malik, NDMA Chairman Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, and representatives of relevant federal ministries, divisions and departments.

The participants underscored the committee’s role in strengthening national preparedness and ensuring effective coordination during the ongoing 2026 monsoon season. The NDMA briefed the meeting on seasonal projections, major incidents reported so far and the country’s state of preparedness.

The committee also discussed the way forward for implementing the tasks assigned under the Terms of Reference (ToRs) notified by the Prime Minister’s Office. Members reviewed the national coordination framework aimed at ensuring effective preparedness and response throughout the monsoon season.

The body approved the inclusion of the chief secretaries of all provinces as co-opted members to strengthen coordination between the federation and provinces.

It noted that the multiple crises arising from the 2026 monsoon and beyond need to be clearly identified to enable a coordinated national response.

The committee observed that shrinking glaciers, coupled with increasing drought conditions and below-normal rainfall in many parts of Pakistan, could place additional stress on the agriculture sector and pose serious food security challenges.

Mr Iqbal directed the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to work closely with the National Emergencies Operation Centre (NEOC) to develop long-term projections through 2027.

All participating ministries and organisations agreed to maintain close coordination and ensure a unified national response to safeguard lives, livelihoods and critical infrastructure during the 2026 monsoon season.

Published in Dawn, July 4th, 2026