Don't compare Karachi with London, says Sindh CM after rains ravage provincial capital

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said on Wednesday that Karachi received above-average rainfall in the current spell, which choked the drainage system and submerged major parts of the city.

In a press conference, he said “comparison of Karachi with London during rains is absurd because drainage systems of different cities are designed keeping in view the average rainfall received by them."

“No city can survive when it experiences above-average rainfall. During such an incident, what matters is how quickly the water is drained,” he said while admitting the incidence of rain were rising due to climate change.

Monsoon rains: Karachi’s death toll rises to 14

He stressed that the provincial government did an excellent job in cleaning Nullahs prior to the rains, as well as draining the water after the downpour, despite the fact that this year's rain was more than the devastating downpours witnessed in 2020.

Water did not stand on Nagan Chowrangi in Karachi for more than 2 hours, he said, highlighting that earlier it used to take many days to drain the water from that area.

Brushing off the view that the provincial government was ill-prepared, he said that the city received rain during Eid holidays but still officials from concerned departments worked hard to drain the water and rescue citizens.

He also dismissed the view that emergency was not imposed on time and stated that an alert was issued by the National Disaster Management Authority on July 5.

29 die in rain-related incidents in Sindh

Rejecting rumours that major officials were on leave during the second day of Eid, Shah stated that the chief secretary of Sindh along with Karachi's administrator, municipal commissioner, local government secretary, managing director of Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, managing director of Sindh Solid Waste Management Board and all district commissioners were working on the second day of Eid.

He also warned that another spell is expected to strike the city from Thursday.

PMD says another strong monsoon spell expected between July 14-17

On Tuesday, Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said more torrential rains were expected to hit Karachi and other parts of Sindh and Balochistan in the coming days, raising concerns of urban flooding in the region.

The Met Office said that monsoon currents from Bay of Bengal are continuously penetrating in upper and central parts of the country and a strong monsoon low-pressure area (LPA) is likely to approach Sindh on July 14 (Thursday).