Monsoon rainfall: Rain brings temporary relief as water shortage continues

Heavy downpour brings respite to people from hot and humid weather.

ISLAMABAD:

The rain on Wednesday morning brought a sigh of relief to residents of the twin cities, who had been braving sweltering heat with prolonged power outages.

Thick dark clouds kept hovering over the city during the day, bringing down the temperature which had become unbearable during the past few days.

According to Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the maximum temperature in Islamabad was recorded at 28 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, while PMD Director General Arif Mehmood said that ongoing rain spell will continue during the next 24 hours.

Islamabad received an average of 10mm rainfall, while the average in Rawalpindi was estimated to be around 12mm. Chaklala received 15mm of rainfall, Shamsabad 8mm, Islamabad (Bokra) 13mm and Zero Point 10mm.

Responding to a question, Mehmood said that the water in Mangla and Tarbela reservoirs is insufficient to cater to people’s needs due to lack of sufficient water storage facilities.

Water shortage

Various sectors of the city continued to face water shortage on Wednesday. The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has been unable to provide a consistent supply of water in sectors I-9, I-10, G-10 and G-11 for the past three months.

A resident of I-10/2 said that his house had not been supplied water in four days, prompting him to move his family to a relative’s place in Rawalpindi.

The CDA’s water tanker service has proven to be insufficient to meet the demand. The civic agency receives over 1,000 calls for tankers, while Water and Sanitation Agency in Rawalpindi receives 300 requests on a daily basis.

An official of the CDA blamed unscheduled power outages and shortage of water in Rawal and Khanpur dams for the shortage of water.

Drinking water has posed a challenge, with people piling up on the few filtration plants in the city that are still working.

CDA Chairman Farkhand Iqbal told a delegation of residents of I-10 that the civic agency “is in contact with the Islamabad Electric Supply Company to resolve the power crisis, which will ensure smooth water supply to people”.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 26^th, 2012.