Weak monsoon season expected in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: The monsoon season was late to kick-off this year. Expected at the start of the month, the first monsoon rain came about 10 days later. The temperature plummeted temporarily but was quick to rise soon after the rain stopped.

Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) expects that the next spell of monsoon rains will start on July 20 and last for about two to three days, which will temporarily break the heat wave in the capital. However PMD does not expect a strong monsoon season this year, said Ghulam Rasul, the Chief Meteorologist at the department.

Despite the weak monsoon’s forecast this year, PMD is hopeful that Islamabad will get ample rainfall to replenish its dwindling water reservoirs, which have forced the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to start water rationing.

“We have been rationing water since the start of this year,” said Ramzan Sajid, spokesperson for CDA.

He added that the authority was currently supplying
about 57 million gallons of water, as opposed to a
daily demand of 75 million gallons.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 18^th, 2010.