Tag: MET office

  • Murree, other districts finalise fresh emergency plan ahead of upcoming rain and snow

    Murree, other districts finalise fresh emergency plan ahead of upcoming rain and snow

    The administration of Rawalpindi district, which includes Gujar Khan, Kahuta, Kallar Syedan, Kotli Sattian, Murree, Rawalpindi Tehsil, and Taxila has finalised a fresh contingency plan ahead of the upcoming rain and snow that is forecasted for the hilly areas from Tuesday, January 18, and Thursday, January 20.

    The Meteorological Office has asked all departments to make appropriate arrangements ahead of the snowfall and rain in the region.

    Additional deputy commissioner and three assistant commissioners have been deployed in Murree to avoid another tragedy.

    According to the new plan, much of the focus will be on snow removal and traffic management. Entry in the hill station will be regulated which means not more 8,000 vehicles will be allowed to enter.

    In addition, the probe committee, which is expected to submit its report to Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar on January 16, is now camped out at the Punjab House in Islamabad.

    Earlier this week, The Islamabad High Court (IHC) declared National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) responsible for the Murree tragedy which killed 23 people, including children due to carbon monoxide poisonous gas in their cars.

  • Three year prison sentence, fine for false moon-sighting witnesses: bill

    Three year prison sentence, fine for false moon-sighting witnesses: bill

    The moon-sighting issue in Pakistan is a socio-religious challenge as many religious events(Eid al-Fitr, Eid al-Adha) are directly related to it. In a bid to put an end to the moon sighting controversies around key festivals like Eid, the Pakistan government is imposing a three years imprisonment and a Rs 50,000 fine for anyone who announces the false moon sighting before the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee.

    Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan introduced the Pakistan Ruet Hilal Bill 2021 on behalf of the Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Noorul Haq Qadri.

    The proposed bill mainly aims to tackle the formation of a Federal Ruet Hilal committee, led by recognised Ulema and scholars from all sects and schools of thought which has a history of announcing Eid and the start of Ramazan.

    The bill authorises only the chairperson of the federal committee or his nominee to make an announcement regarding the sighting of the moon. The bill proposes a fine of up to Rs50,000 for anyone violating the law.

    The federal committee, according to the bill, will comprise 16 members, including the chairperson. The federal committee will consist of two Ulema from each province and Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir; a grade-20 officer from Met Office, a science and technology expert and a representative of the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission and an officer of the level of director general from the Ruet Hilal Affairs division of the ministry, who will act as the secretary of the committee.

    The bill has suggested a complete ban on any other committee formed by individuals under any name for sighting of the moon for commencement of each Islamic Hijri calendar month.

  • Cyclone Gulab: Karachi on high alert as storm nears

    Cyclone Gulab: Karachi on high alert as storm nears

    The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) issued a warning to Karachi residents as a cyclone named Gulab nears the Sindh-Makran coast.

    People are advised to keep at a distance from trees, billboards and polls, Director Met Office Sardar Sarfaraz told ARY News.

    Earlier, as per the official notification, the coastal belts had also been warned as the sea conditions would remain very rough with high surge at times till October 3.

    The department also suggested that there will be urban flooding in Karachi, Badin, Thatta, Hyderabad, Dadu, Mirpurkhas, Shaeed Benazirabad, Lasbela, Sonmiani, Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar, Turbat and Jiwani.

    The notification said: “The system is likely to intensify further into a cyclonic storm during the next 24 hours and move northwestwards.”

    However, the Met Office said that the PMD Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre, Karachi is closely monitoring the system.

    Currently, Hashtag #CycloneGulab is one of the top trends on Twitter Pakistan as heavy rainfall has caused electricity poles to fall in different parts of the city.

  • MET office predicts heavy rain in Karachi, Hyderabad on August 7, 8

    MET office predicts heavy rain in Karachi, Hyderabad on August 7, 8

     The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted rain with thundershowers in Karachi and Hyderabad on August 7 and 8 (Friday, Saturday).

    According to the MET office report, heavy rain in Karachi and Hyderabad may result in urban flooding and authorities have been directed to remain alert to control over the situation.

    The weather in Karachi will remain partly cloudy today, while the maximum temperature can rise upto 36 degree centigrade. 70% humidity was recorded in the morning.