PMD issues drought alert for Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab
Pakistan
The current weather and seasonal outlook are expected to worsen the drought situation
RAWALPINDI (Dunya News) – The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) on Monday issued a drought alert for three province – Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab – due to below average rainfall.
The PMD states that drought conditions are expected to persist in Sindh, southern Balochistan, and the lower eastern plains of Punjab. This comes despite recent rain spells that have alleviated drought conditions in the central and northern parts of the country.
The PMD reported that the average temperature in the lower half of the country was 2-3 degrees Celsius above normal during the current month. Some areas in the southern region have experienced consecutive dry days exceeding 200, which has further intensified the drought.
The current weather and seasonal outlook are expected to worsen the drought situation in the affected areas, the weather pundits warned.
In Sindh, moderate drought conditions are expected in Padidan, Shaheed Benazirabad, Dadu, Tharparkar, Umerkot, Khairpur, Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, and Karachi, while mild drought conditions are predicted for Ghotki, Jacobabad, Larkana, Sukkur, Khairpur, and Sanghar.
In Balochistan, moderate drought conditions are anticipated in Gwadar, Kech, Lasbela, Panjgur, and Awaran, with mild conditions expected in Chagai, Jaffarabad, Jhal Magsi, Sibbi, Nushki, and Washuk.
In Punjab, the southern areas of Bahawalnagar, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan are likely to be the most affected. The PMD’s National Drought Monitoring & Early Warning Centre (NDMC) is closely monitoring the situation.
Flash droughts, which develop rapidly due to changes in temperature, precipitation, wind, and radiation, are also expected in the coming months due to the rainfall deficit and rising temperatures. Given the current weather conditions and seasonal outlook, the drought situation is likely to worsen in Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab.
SHORTFALL IN RAINFALL
The overall rainfall from September 1, 2024, to March 21, 2025, was 40% below normal. The rainfall deficits across the country 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 report from the NDMC noted that the average temperature from March 15 to 21 was 1 to 7 degrees above normal, which could lead to lower soil moisture levels. This temperature increase is expected to raise water demand, negatively affecting crops and further stressing already limited water resources.
