LAHORE: In an unprecedented move to strengthen disaster management, the Pakistan Civil Services Academy (CSA), Lahore, has ordered the deployment of probationary officers of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) to flood-affected districts across Punjab to support ongoing relief, recovery and rehabilitation efforts in the wake of the recent devastating floods.
In a formal communication addressed to the Senior Member Board of Revenue Punjab and all Deputy Commissioners,a copy of which is available with The News, the Academy conveyed that the officers undergoing the 48th Specialized Training Programme (STP) would be attached to local administrations under the supervision of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA). A total of 49 probationary officers of PAS, along with six officers of the District Management Service (DMS) of Gilgit-Baltistan, are currently enrolled in the training course which began on July 3, 2025 and will conclude on March 31, 2026.
The officers, divided into smaller groups, have been allocated to 15 flood-affected districts and are required to report to their designated Deputy Commissioners on the morning of September 8. They will assist the district administrations until September 14 by supporting camp management, overseeing relief distribution, ensuring efficient service delivery, and coordinating with field-level stakeholders. The academy has described this attachment as imperative for mobilizing human resources at a time when multiple districts are still struggling with the aftermath of the monsoon floods.
The communication further requested that the PDMA coordinate with District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs) to make arrangements for boarding, lodging and security for the probationers during their week-long stay in the field. To ensure proper coordination, the Academy recommended that liaison officers be nominated to work in close contact with Mr. Muhammad Anees Chishti, Programme Officer of Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), at the CSA in Lahore.
According to the annexure shared with the letter, the probationary officers have been divided into groups and assigned to the affected districts as follows: Narowal (Muhammad Amir Khan, Islam Aslam, Momina Javad, Muhammad Awais Sultan); Pakpatan (Muhammad Hasnat Aman, Mohammad Usama, Khansa Malik); Sahiwal (Haris Ali Virk, Iftikhar Ali, Aqsa Noureen, Zopash Agha); Okara (Maryam Zahid, Sanaullah, Touseeq Ahmed, Capt [R] Mohammad Idrees); Kasur (Eshrat Fatima, Rabeea Ikram, Mujahid Wasim Durrani, Muhammad Abdullah); Mandi Bahauddin (Muhammad Tayyab, Zahra Munir, Akbar Durrani); Hafizabad (Hamza Aamir Hashmi, Sana Shafqat, Muhammad Shoaib, Asifa Saleem); Gujranwala (Capt [R] Muhammad Yahya, Sohail Khan, Sehrish Rehmat, Sofia Noor); Sialkot (Dawood Ahmed, Sohail Afridi, Mahvash Irshad, Aliza); Chiniot (Siffat Ullah, Mahrukh Malik, Samroze Khan); Jhang (Okasha Abrar Rana, Umer Iqbal, Adil Riaz, Noor-ul-Huda); Multan (Sana Ejaz, Aamina Batool, Sabeeh Ahmad, Capt [R] Haris Ahmad); Sargodha (Tania Azhar, Teerath Kumar, Jawaria Dar, Sami Ahmed); Lodhran (Kainat, Abdul Zaman, Capt [R] Ahmed Faraz Azeem); and Bahawalpur (Flt Lt [R] Faizan Ahmad, Shaheer Bano, Ahsan Shahzad Shah).
Officials noted that this field deployment will serve a dual purpose: strengthening the government’s humanitarian response in disaster-hit areas and providing the young officers with invaluable exposure to crisis management and inter-agency coordination. The arrangement is also seen as a significant training exercise that will test the officers’ ability to adapt to real-time challenges in the field while complementing the district administrations’ relief operations.
By mobilizing the probationers to flood-stricken regions, the Pakistan Civil Services Academy has underscored the government’s strategy of integrating academic training with practical field exposure. The decision reflects a broader approach to equipping the next generation of civil servants with the capacity to respond to emergencies effectively, ensuring that they combine theoretical learning with operational competence to serve communities in times of need.