LAHORE, June 15: The Met department has predicted normal rainfall during the monsoon season starting from July 1.

It expects an average of 137.5mm rainfall all over the country during the monsoon which lasts till Sept 30.

The country has been having below normal rainfall during the last three monsoon seasons. It nevertheless received widespread rainfall and heavy snow over the hills last summer which compensated for the monsoon deficiency of the last year.

Chief Meteorologist Shaukat Ali Awan told Dawn on Sunday that the prediction had been made while keeping in view the temperatures in May and June and climatic conditions in the areas around the Bay of Bengal and the Pacific Ocean.

“The prediction carries a 10 per cent tolerance limit (rainfall below or above the forecast),” he said.

The Met department also activated its Flood Warning Centre in Lahore on Sunday which would monitor a significant rainfall and river flow during the pre-monsoon period from June 15 to 30. The centre uses the police wireless system for monitoring river flow especially at the entry points in Pakistan. It will continue to function till Oct 15.

The provincial government has also established an integrated flood monitoring unit at the Flood Warning Centre for coordination between various departments in case of any significant weather system or floods. The departments included in the unit are Wapda, Railways, irrigation, relief, communication and works and information departments.

Mr Awan said there was no westerly or monsoon activity at the moment and, therefore, temperatures would rise during the next three days. There was an incursion of some moisture from the Arabian Sea which would create mugginess, he said.

On Sunday, the maximum temperature in Lahore was 45 degrees Celsius, in Bahawalpur 47.7 degrees C, Faisalabad and Sargodha 46.5, Shorkot 46, Sibbi 45.9, Dera Ghazi Khan 45.8, Jacobabad, Moenjodaro, Sialkot and Jhelum 45, Bannu 44.8, Rahimyar Khan and Dera Ismail Khan 44.5, Peshawar and Rohri 44, Khanpur 43.5, Islamabad and Nawabshah 43, Chorr 42, Muzaffarabad 41 and Hyderabad 40.

It will remain hot and dry all over the country with chances of light rain in Malakand and Azad Kashmir during the next 24 hours.

Meanwhile, a meeting presided over by Punjab Communication and Works Minister Chaudhry Zaheeruddin finalized arrangements for the protection of roads and bridges during the monsoon. The meeting which was attended by officers of the various departments concerned was informed that a flood emergency cell had been established in the highways department which would function 24 hours a day.

The minister directed all EDOs and superintending engineers to ensure adequate arrangements for the protection of roads in their respective districts. All broken roads should immediately be repaired, he said.

He said planning should be made to resume traffic on roads to be inundated in case of floods. All related departments must remain in touch with each other for meeting any eventuality, he said.