The fourth spell of monsoon rains will lash Punjab from tomorrow, leading to a considerable rise in water levels in rivers, streams and nullahs of the province, said the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Saturday. The PDMA said that under the impact of the fresh monsoon system, most districts of the province were expected to receive rainfall, accompanied by strong winds, from July 20 to July 25.  

The Authority further said that rains were likely in Rawalpindi, Murree, Galyat, Attock, Chakwal, Mandi Bahauddin, Hafizabad, Gujrat, Jhelum, Gujranwala, Lahore, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Narowal, Toba Tek Singh, Jhang, Sargodha, Mianwali, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar and Multan during the aforementioned period.  

PDMA DG Irfan Ali Kathia said that on the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, all district administrations had been put on a high alert. “The River Indus is in low flood at Tarbela and Kalabagh, while it is in medium flood at Chashma,” he said, adding, “The water level at Chashma is rising and there were fears that there might be high flood at the site.” 

The DG said similarly, an alert had been issued that there would be an extraordinary increase in the flow of water in rivers Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej from July 21 due to rains. “People are advised to take precautionary measures in view of the inclement weather,” Kathia said, adding, “As many as 123 people have lost their lives, 462 have been injured and 150 buildings have been damaged during the monsoon season this year.” 

He said that as per the policy of the Punjab government, people would be compensated for the losses they suffered. “On the orders of the chief minister, farmers would be provided compensation for the damage caused to their crops by the rains.”  

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)