The flood emergency that pushed the Chenab through Jhang earlier this week has eased sharply. The latest official flow readings show the river back within normal limits at Trimmu Barrage near Jhang, indicating that the flood peak has passed the district and is now moving downstream.
The latest official readings
The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Punjab’s latest river-flow update records the Chenab at normal levels across all its Jhang-region gauges: 56,000 cusecs at Marala, 68,000 at Khanki, 75,000 at Qadirabad, and 80,000 at Trimmu. The only point of concern on the Chenab system is further downstream at Panjnad, where a medium-level flood is being recorded at 234,000 cusecs.
A separate Friday river report puts Trimmu’s inflow as low as 20,900 cusecs against an outflow of 5,300 — the kind of numbers seen in a normal autumn, not a flood emergency. The PDMA says river conditions are largely stable, with monitoring teams remaining on alert, particularly around Panjnad, in case flows shift again.
What this means for Jhang
This is a marked change from the situation earlier in the week, when the overflowing Chenab entered Jhang district and submerged around 180 villages, cutting off roads and forcing families to spend nights under the open sky. The river has now fallen back within its banks at Trimmu — but residents in the low-lying riverine belt should not treat the danger as fully over.
Floodwater drains slowly from fields and settlements, so standing water can linger in low areas for days even after river flows normalize. Embankments weakened by the surge also need to be checked before water returns to them. Farmers should wait for official clearance before moving livestock or machinery back into the floodplain, and families in relief camps should follow the district administration’s guidance on when it is safe to return home.
The bigger picture
The water that passed through Jhang is continuing its journey downstream. The Indus is currently running high at the Sukkur and Guddu barrages in Sindh, with a low flood at Kotri — the receding phase at Guddu and rising flows at Sukkur show the flood wave moving through the system. Meanwhile, the Ravi is flowing normally at all its Punjab gauges, and the PDMA reports the Indus within normal limits at Tarbela, Kalabagh, Chashma and Taunsa.
With the rescue phase winding down in Jhang, attention now shifts to damage assessment and rehabilitation — the surveys that will decide how compensation and rebuilding support reach the hundreds of villages the water passed through.
Source: PDMA Punjab river-flow update and WAPDA river report, via Independent News Pakistan (INP).
