Floodwaters Submerge Kartarpur Corridor, Rescue Efforts Intensify

Lahore, Aug 27 (PTI) — Floodwaters from the Ravi River have inundated the Kartarpur Corridor, including the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib site in Narowal district, Punjab province, Pakistan, leaving more than 100 people stranded, mostly staff members. Officials reported this incident on Wednesday.

“High floodwater has submerged the entire Kartarpur Corridor complex, including the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib,” stated Saifullah Khokar, head of the Kartarpur Corridor Project Management Unit. Rescues are underway using boats and a helicopter to evacuate the trapped individuals, primarily staff members of the Kartarpur Project Management Unit.

Social media has been flooded with images and videos showing the revered Sikh shrine encircled by water.

The Pakistani government inaugurated the Kartarpur Corridor in November 2019. The corridor, which stretches approximately 4.1 kilometers from the Pakistan-India border, links Pakistan's Gurdwara Darbar Sahib—where Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, lived and died in the early 16th century—to the Dera Baba Nanak in Punjab's Gurdaspur district. The corridor provides visa-free access to Indian pilgrims wishing to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib.

According to Narowal Deputy Commissioner Hasan Raza, hundreds of residents in nearby areas have been evacuated after India released water into the Ravi, swelling the river past its capacity. The Ravi River, with a holding capacity of 150,000 cusecs, was flowing at 155,000 cusecs at Kot Nain in Shakargarh tehsil, he reported.

On Sunday, India issued flood warnings to Pakistan through diplomatic channels on "humanitarian grounds." After the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, India adopted several punitive measures against Pakistan, including putting the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in "abeyance." Typically, flood alerts are conveyed through the Indus Water Commission.

Officials reported that thousands of acres of farmland are now submerged, causing damage to rice crops and animal fodder. Deputy Commissioner Raza said heavy rains over the last 24 hours, coupled with overflow from drains in Auj, Bayan, and Dek, have worsened the situation. These conditions forced people to relocate to safer regions.

Authorities have issued alerts regarding potential high flooding in the River Ravi at Shahdara on Wednesday night. Punjab faces an "exceptionally high" flood risk due to heavy rainfall and water released by India from its dams, according to Geo News reports. At Shahdara in Lahore, the river is flowing at 72,900 cusecs, threatening low-lying areas like Shahdara, Park View, and Motorway-2.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened an emergency meeting on Wednesday to assess the situation, directing officials to enhance early warning systems for better alert issuance.

The provincial government mobilized army troops earlier in the day to assist in rescue efforts, providing relief and evacuation in already flooded zones in Punjab. More than 250,000 people have been moved from flood-prone areas to safer locations as rising water levels affect almost all eastern rivers.