Winter rains expected

After several months of drought, country is expected to receive the first winter rains that would help the standing crops attain full growth. The Met Office said on Monday that scattered showers were expected in Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Lahore, Sargodha Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand and Hazara Divisions, besides Islamabad, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and drizzle in Zhob region from Jan 2 to Jan 7.
Farmers hope the fresh winter rains would help their crops produce a better yield after a prolonged dry weather spell ever since late August last year. "Winter rains always benefit the wheat crops and vegetables to grow fully especially in rain-dependent areas," Abdullah Khan, a farmer from District Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa told Business Recorder via phone.
Light to moderate snowfall were also expected over the hills of Malakand and Hazara Divisions, Galliyat, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir. However, dry weather would continue in Sindh.
The fresh weather system was likely to open up clouds to trigger intermittent rain, thunderstorm and snowfall in the upcountry from Tuesday to Saturday, the Met Office said, forecasting a drop in temperature especially in upper parts.
The weather system was also expected to unleash isolated snowfall over the hills of Quetta and Zhob Malakand and Hazara Divisions, besides Galliyat, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir over the period. The Met altered the citizens to the dangers of landslides in mountainous areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir during rains.
The Met in its advisory asked the farmers mainly of rain-cropped areas of the country, who rely on tube-wells, to evolve a plan to irrigate their crops as per needs ahead of rainy-snowy spell of the winter season.
Similarly, it said that the growers of the irrigated areas should water their standing crops as per requirement in accordance with the prevailing weather conditions. It said that the first irrigating should be provided to newly cultivated crops within 25 days.
It warned the growers of negative implications of the soaring weeds to hit the standing crops, saying that the unwanted plants should be wiped off immediately for a greater agriculture output. The farmers of northern half of the country should take precautionary measures to protect their crops from frost as temperature was expected to drop further, the Met said.