RAWALPINDI: The rain lashed the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Thursday inundating low lying areas while the Met Office has predicted more rains in the next 24 hours. The Met Office has predicted urban and flash flooding in local nullahs.

Residents criticised the government and said that the present and past governments were equally responsible for the faulty sewerage system, adding that millions of rupees had been spent on drains but their condition is the same. Nasir Hussain, a resident of Nadeem Colony, said that they had to spend sleepless nights during the monsoon due to fear of flood. Imtiaz Malik, a shopkeeper on Jamia Masjid Road, said that the provincial government had spent millions of rupees but the water submerged at this part of the city soon after therain.

Even though rain brought down the temperature to 31 degrees, the humidity level remained at 100 percent. The Meteorological Department recorded 3 millimetres of rainat Zero Point, 1mm at Saidpur, 40mm at Golra, 37mm at Bokra in Islamabad while 37mmrainwas recorded at Chaklala, 31mm at Katcheri and 16mm at Shamsabad in Rawalpindi.

According to a Met official, monsoon currents are continuously penetrating in upper and lower parts of the country and likely to strengthen further. A westerly wave is also continuously penetrating different parts of the country, he said, adding more rain-wind/thundershower is expected on Friday in upper/central Punjab, Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, North and eastern Balochistan, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. Isolated heavy falls are likely in Kashmir, upper Punjab, Islamabad, upper KP and north eastern Balochistan. He said that heavy rains may generate urban flooding and flash flooding in local nullahs of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Haripur, Dir, Swat, Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand, Bajaur, Lakki Marwat, Bannu, Tank, Khuzdar, Zhob, Barkhan, Kohlu, Musa Khel, Sherani, Sibbi and Bolan during the period. Rainfall may trigger landslides in Kashmir, Galiyat, Murree, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Chillas, Diamer, Gilgit, Hunza, Astore and Skardu during the forecast period.

Travellers and tourists are advised to remain more cautious. On the other hand, people had a tough time in draining out water as many parts of the city include Dingi Khoi, Akalgarh, Nadeem Colony, Javed Colony, Dhoke Ratta, Jamia Masjid Road, Bani Chowk, Sadiqabad, Satellite Town, Bohar Bazaar, Muslim Town, Service Road and Chirah Road near Shamsabad.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2022