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KHANEWAL, Pakistan: Most of the 2.6 million people displaced by record floods in Pakistan’s Punjab province have returned home to find their houses damaged and their crops destroyed, as authorities promised Thursday to compensate all victims.

Flooding triggered by heavy monsoon rains and water from overflowing dams in India since August has damaged 2.5 million acres of farmland and killed 118 people, according to Punjab relief commissioner, Nabil Javed.

In a statement, the Punjab Disaster Management Authority said August brought the province’s worst flooding on record.

Displaced families are returning now that the water is receding, he said, adding said authorities will begin a survey next week to assess damage to crops, homes and infrastructure in Punjab.

Many survivors said they learned about their losses only upon returning to the flood-hit villages. In Qatalpur village in Punjab, 45-year-old Mohammad Mohsin broke down after returning from a relief camp with his family. His house is still standing but is riddled with cracks.

“The flood destroyed us, our crops are gone,” he told The Associated Press. “We survived the waters, but I fear one day the roof will fall on us. My house needs urgent repair, but so far we have received no government aid.”

In the same village, Parveen Bibi, 39, showed the remains of her broken home where she now sleeps with her children.

“During the flood, we stayed on the riverbank and got food from the government,” she said. Bibi said so far, no official has visited to assess their losses.

Along a roadside in Khanewal district in Punjab, Sajjad Hussain, 52, said he spent a week under the open sky with his family after his village was submerged earlier this month.

“Now that the water has gone, I am going back,” the farmer said. “Even if the government only gives me a tent, I will thank God.”

The swelling of the Ravi, Chenab and Sutlej rivers in recent weeks was “unprecedented,” said Irfan Ali Kathia, the authority’s director general. “Water has receded in most areas,” he said.

Kathia said the waters are now moving south toward Sindh province.

Pakistan witnessed its most devastating monsoon season in 2022 when floods killed 1,739 people and caused an estimated $40 billion in damage.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile exports, the backbone of its economy and a major supplier to global brands, rose nearly 10 percent year-on-year to $3.2 billion in July and August, official data showed, with knitwear and readymade garments leading the growth.

The textile and apparel sector is Pakistan’s largest export earner, accounting for more than half of total exports and contributing around 8.5 percent of GDP by employing nearly 40 percent of the industrial labor force. But high energy costs, outdated infrastructure and policy uncertainty continue to slow growth and leave the country trailing regional peers such as Bangladesh.

“The textile exports from the country were recorded at US $3.203 billion during July–August (2025–26) against the exports of US $2.915 billion during July–August (2024–25),” the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP), a state news agency, said in a report.

Knitwear exports surged 16.9 percent to $959 million, while readymade garments rose 10.6 percent to $728 million. Bedwear exports increased by 12 percent to $565 million and towels by 4.8 percent to $179 million.

Other products also contributed to the rise: cotton yarn exports grew by 7.8 percent to $119 million, synthetic textiles by 8 percent to $66 million, and made-up articles by 14.3 percent to $137 million. However, exports of tents, canvas and tarpaulin fell 18.3 percent to $16 million.

Despite the year-on-year increase, monthly exports dipped 9.3 percent in August compared to July, reflecting continuing volatility in the sector. 

Pakistan’s commerce minister, Jam Kamal, last month announced the finalization of a five-year Textiles and Apparel Policy and a National Industrial Policy aimed at making the industry regionally competitive, removing trade barriers and ensuring long-term export growth.