ISLAMABAD, Aug 2: More than normal rainfalls are expected in coming few days that would fill the two big water reservoirs, Mangla and Tarbela dams, by middle of this month, official forecasts say.

A meeting presided over by water and power minister Liaqat Ali Jatoi was informed by the Pakistan Meteorological Department on Thursday that ‘above normal rainfalls’ were expected in the catchment areas. By August 8, Sindh would get another spell of monsoon rains, the PMD director-general said, adding that this might not affect the areas of Balochistan.

According to the PMD’s forecast, a westerly wave is likely to approach upper parts of the country during next 24-36 hours. Its interaction with monsoon currents can activate monsoon activity in Islamabad, some parts of Punjab, the NWFP, Kashmir and the Northern Areas during next four days.

The Indus River System Authority (Irsa) chairman said that on the basis of PMD forecasts it could be expected that the two big reservoirs would be completely filled by the mid of August. He said provinces were getting water supplies as per their quotas. The supplies, he added, would be higher as compared to last year and post-Tarbela average.

The Irsa chairman informed the meeting that Wapda had been supplied about six MAF of water for power generation. The supply was unprecedented, he claimed.

The minister informed the meeting that the prime minister had doubled funds for the flood protection schemes. He said special attention should be paid to affected areas of Sindh and Balochistan.

The meeting expressed displeasure and dissatisfaction over the performance of telemetry system. It was decided to hold an exclusive meeting on the issue next week. The Rs400 million project had failed to yield any positive outcome since its establishment more than two years ago.