ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority has coordinated a commercial charter flight carrying an 86-ton relief consignment for flood-affected people in Nepal, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan.
The huge wave of freezing water and debris, sparked by a glacial collapse on the China-Nepal border, has killed at least 1,003 people and left nearly 4,500 missing, with Kathmandu warning reconstruction costs could run into the "billions of dollars."
The news agency reported that the aircraft would transport essential relief items, including tents, blankets, ready-to-eat meals, dry rations, camp supplies, hygiene kits and medicines.
The NDMA coordinated the relief operation in solidarity with the government and people of Nepal, in accordance with the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The relief consignment addresses Nepal’s immediate needs, including emergency shelter, food, safe drinking water, medicines, and the restoration of essential services and access to affected areas, APP reported.
In accordance with arrangements coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the consignment will be received by Pakistan’s ambassador to Nepal and subsequently handed over to the local authorities, including the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority.
Nepal, a largely rural nation of 30 million people, has contributed little to the emissions driving global warming produced by wealthy, industrialized nations, but is suffering its consequences.
Glaciers in the wider Himalayan and Hindu Kush ranges are a crucial water source for around 240 million people in the mountainous regions, as well as for another 1.65 billion people in the South Asian and Southeast Asian river valleys below.