‘Next spell of monsoon rains to be heavier’
The next spell of monsoon rains in Karachi, expected to lash the city between July 24 and July 25, are likely to be heavier than the last spell, predicted Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) chief meteorologist Sardar Sarfaraz on Monday.
According to Sarfaraz, while there is no system that could produce heavy downpours currently in the port city, some localities may witness light drizzle due to the low-level clouds formed by strong winds coming in from the sea. He added that this could lead to light rain in the metropolis on Tuesday (today) as well, while the weather was expected to remain pleasant for the rest of the week.
The PMD recorded the highest temperature in Karachi on Monday as 35.5 degrees Celsius, with a minimum of 29 degrees Celsius.
Preparing for the downpour
Meanwhile, Sindh Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah claimed that all arrangements had been made to deal with the next spell of rains in the provincial capital.
He stated that the preparations included the repair of roads, placement of lids over manholes and the cleaning of stormwater drains and nullahs across the metropolis.
"With more rains expected in the next few days, the Sindh government has made all the relevant arrangements beforehand," he maintained, adding that municipal commissioners were visiting all major nullahs in their respective areas and supervising the process of installing dewatering machines.
Shah also claimed that the government was focusing on underpasses and other narrow points in the city, at risk of being choked by rainfall, to avoid any mishaps.
Separately, Karachi mayor Wasim Akhtar claimed that he had been visiting sites where 38 major drains were being cleaned jointly by the World Bank, Sindh government and Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), to ensure the task was completed before the next downpour in the city.
"Our first priority is to open choked points; the drains are full of garbage since they had not been cleaned since 2018," he told a meeting of the KMC engineering department, directing relevant officials to urge contractors to increase the machinery being used so that the work could be completed on time.
Stating that the KMC had removed encroachments from nullahs in New Karachi on Sunday, Akhtar ordered similar operations to be carried out in other parts of the city as well. "Cleaning the drains is not a permanent solution. The problem will persist until encroachments are removed and boundary walls are established," he insisted, once again requesting the people not to throw litter in the drains or encroach upon them.
He added that no new development works would begin until the projects begun last year were completed.
Rainfall in Karachi last week seemed to have caught the authorities unaware despite predictions by the PMD. With roads flooded, traffic jammed and electricity on the blink, the metropolis descended into chaos in the first spell of monsoon rains.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2020.