The Pakistan Meteorological Department has issued a drought alert for Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) issued a drought alert on Monday for the provinces of Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab due to insufficient rainfall.
The PMD indicates that drought conditions are anticipated to continue across Sindh, southern Balochistan, and the lower eastern plains of Punjab. This occurs despite recent rainfall that has mitigated drought conditions in the center and northern regions of the country.
The PMD indicated that the average temperature in the southern region of the country was 2-3 degrees Celsius above the norm this month. Certain regions in the southern area have endured almost 200 consecutive dry days, exacerbating the drought conditions.
Weather experts cautioned that the prevailing conditions and seasonal forecast are anticipated to exacerbate the drought in the impacted regions.
Moderate drought conditions are anticipated in Padidan, Shaheed Benazirabad, Dadu, Tharparkar, Umerkot, Khairpur, Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, and Karachi, whilst light drought conditions are forecasted for Ghotki, Jacobabad, Larkana, Sukkur, Khairpur, and Sanghar.
Moderate drought conditions are projected in Gwadar, Kech, Lasbela, Panjgur, and Awaran in Balochistan, while mild conditions are forecast in Chagai, Jaffarabad, Jhal Magsi, Sibbi, Nushki, and Washuk.
The southern regions of Bahawalnagar, Bahawalpur, and Rahim Yar Khan in Punjab are expected to be the worst impacted. The National Drought Monitoring and Early Warning Centre (NDMC) of the PMD is diligently observing the circumstances.
Flash droughts, which emerge swiftly as a result of fluctuations in temperature, precipitation, wind, and radiation, are anticipated in the forthcoming months due to the deficit in rainfall and increasing temperatures. Considering the prevailing meteorological conditions and seasonal forecast, the drought scenario is expected to deteriorate across Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab.
DEFICIT IN PRECIPITATION
The total precipitation from September 1, 2024, to March 21, 2025, was 40% below the average level. The national rainfall deficits are as follows: Sindh (-62%), Balochistan (-52%), Punjab (-38%), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (-35%), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (-29%), and Gilgit-Baltistan (-2%).
According to the PMD, there is a severe water shortage in Tarbela and Mangla dams, with water levels in both reservoirs at critical lows — 1,402 feet in Tarbela and 1,061.75 feet in Mangla, both at dead-level capacity. A recent assessment from the NDMC indicated that the average temperature from March 15 to 21 was 1 to 7 degrees above the norm, perhaps resulting in diminished soil moisture levels. The anticipated rise in temperature is projected to elevate water demand, adversely impacting crops and exacerbating the strain on already constrained water resources.