Third monsoon spell lashes several Sindh districts

Highest amount of rain, 127mm, recorded in Tharparkar district

HYDERABAD:

The third spell of the ongoing monsoon rains lashed several districts of Sindh on Sunday with the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) recording the highest amount of downpour during the last 24 hours in Islamkot Taluka of Tharparkar district where 127 millimeter rain was recorded.

Although the rain has turned the weather pleasant and recharged the subsoil water as well, drainage woes and power outages amid lack of cleanliness have made lives of the people miserable. The rain has once again laid bare the poor infrastructure , especially roads and drainage networks, and the electricity supply system in the urban areas of the province.

By 5:30pm on Sunday, the PMD recorded some 70mm rainfall in Thatta, 69mm in Hyderabad, 65mm in Badin, 59mm in Tando Jam, 46mm in Sakrand, 45mm in Jacobabad and Naushehro Feroze, 31mm in other parts of Tharparkar, 21mm in Larkana, 15mm in Mirpurkhas and 11mm in Sukkur. The downpour has also dealt a blow to certain crops like cotton and chili.

In Hyderabad, low-lying localities were partially submerged. Although the PMD recorded 69mm rain, but Deputy Commissioner Fuad Ghaffar Soomro claimed around 100mm rainfall in the district during the last 24 hours. At least one incident of roof collapse was reported in the Saddar area, but no one was injured.

Hyderabad's old and defective drainage system and roads pockmarked with potholes created sewage puddles in almost all localities of the city. Soomro claimed that the pumping stations of the Water and Sanitation Agency could not be operated optimally due to frequent power outages by the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO).

"We have been using power generators for the last 48 hours because HESCO is supplying less electricity," Soomro said. "The generators reduce drainage capacity of the pumping stations to 25%." He maintained that as soon as HESCO restored the power supply to all the pumping stations they will start working at full capacity. It has rained for 15 days in Hyderabad since early July.

HESCO's spokesman Sadiq Kubar said that 75 out of 121 feeders of 11 KV powering Hyderabad district were shut down for safety reasons after Sunday's downpour. Complaints coming from different areas of Hyderabad suggest that the number of power-deprived areas is still higher.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 25^th, 2022.