11 killed as heavy rains batter Pakistani megacity of Karachi, disrupting Eid

A rickshaw driver and a volunteer push a rickshaw stuck in a flooded road after a heavy rainfall in Karachi, Pakistan, on July 11, 2022. (AP)
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Updated 11 July 2022
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11 killed as heavy rains batter Pakistani megacity of Karachi, disrupting Eid

  • Citizens complain of long power outages, water entering homes, #KarachiRain trends on Twitter
  • Chief meteorologist says new weather system would enter Karachi July 14, last until July 18-19

KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday offered “every possible support” to the government of the Pakistani province of Sindh, as heavy rains battered the provincial capital, Karachi, on Monday, killing at least 11 people, and leaving large parts of the city under water and without power on the second day of Eid Al-Adha.

Dr. Sumaiyya Syed, police surgeon of Karachi, told Arab News 11 deaths from rain-related accidents had been reported at three government hospitals of the city in the last 24 hours. Citizens complained of prolonged power outages and said water, standing for hours on roads, was entering their homes, as #KarachiRain trended on Twitter. There were also traffic jams reported across the city, with many main thoroughfares closed for vehicles.

Intense floods have killed dozens and left hundreds homeless across Pakistan since monsoon downpours began in mid-June, with the death toll from rain-related incidents rising past 150 by Monday.

Heavy rains over the Eid holiday brought to the fore memories of August 2020, when record-breaking heavy rain in Karachi killed over 100 people and disrupted the lives of many of the city’s more than 15 million residents as water flooded main roads and homes.

“A total of 11 rain-related deaths have been reported in the medico-legal sections of JPMC [Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Center]. CHK [Civil Hospital Karachi] and ASH [Abbas Shaheed Hospital] during last 24 hours,” Syed said.

PM Sharif meanwhile offered all necessary help to the Sindh government.

“Deeply saddened by the tragic losses due to torrential rains in Karachi. I am confident that Sindh govt will rise to the occasion & bring life back to normal under the able leadership of CM Sindh. Have offered to extend every possible support,” Sharif tweeted.

A statement from the PM House said Sharif had directed provincial governments and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to ensure protection of people and prevention of losses.

“The federal government should provide full support to the provincial governments and institutions,” the PM said. 

“People in endangered areas should be shifted to safer places. Provision of temporary shelter and food to the affected people should be ensured. Medical teams to be mobilized for emergency medical aid and prevention of epidemic diseases.”

Meanwhile, Karachi Commissioner Muhammad Iqbal Memon urged Karachi residents not to leave their homes unnecessarily and stay away from electricity poles, drains and manholes. He also shared emergency contact details:

Speaking to Arab News, Met Office director Sardar Sarfraz said Karachi’s DHA Phase 2 alone had received up to 126 millimeters of rain on Monday morning.

“Heavy downpours have created urban flooding and the situation may further aggravate with light to heavy rains expected in different parts of the city in the evening,” Sarfaraz said, adding that more heavy rains should be expected as a new weather system entered Karachi on July 14 and lasted up to five days.

He said intermittent rain with thunder was also expected in Mirpurkhas, Umerkot and Tando Mohammad Khan and warned of a risk of flooding in low-lying areas in Karachi, Badin, Thatta, Mirpurkhas and Umerkot.

Video footage widely shared by Karachi residents on Twitter showed rainwater inside houses in different parts of Karachi.




A woman sits in a rubber boat as volunteers pull through a flooded road during the monsoon season in Karachi, Pakistan, on July 9, 2022. (REUTERS)

Chief minister Sindh, Syed Murad Ali Shah, and city administrator Murtaza Wahab, on Monday visited different areas of the city and instructed municipal authorities to drain water, Rasheed Channa, a spokesperson for the chief minister, said.

“Chief minister went to Pir Sibghatullah Rasheed road, Islamia college and other areas of district east with rainwater and directed the water board and deputy commissioner to pump the water out,” Channa said.

In an update shared on Twitter around 2:30am, a spokesperson for K-Electric said the power supply system within its territory was stable.

“Most areas of the city continue to receive power from more than 1,770 feeders out of 1,900,” the Twitter post said, adding that around 130 feeders were closed as a precautionary measure due to reports of power theft or the accumulation of rain water.

Rain wreaked havoc in other parts of Pakistan also on Monday.

Bilal Ahmed, a spokesperson for Rescue 1122 services in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said floods caused by heavy rain had killed five people there.

“Some villages of KP, including Kund Mor, Ambaar, Zakeria Sheikh, Chhota Lahore and Merghoz, are seriously affected by the rains but reports of submerging of entire villages under rainwater are untrue,” Ahmed told Arab News, adding that people were being moved to safe locations.


Pakistan parliament approves bills to extend tenure of services chiefs to five years

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan parliament approves bills to extend tenure of services chiefs to five years

  • Extension in services of army, navy and air force chiefs follows controversial amendments to the constitution last month
  • The opposition PTI party condemns the amendments for changing Pakistan “from a democracy into a monarchy”

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate on Monday approved bills to extend the tenure of the army, navy, and air force chiefs from three to five years, amid protests by the opposition benches. 

The office of the army chief is considered to be the most powerful in the country, with the army having ruled Pakistan for almost half of its 75-year history. Even when not directly in power, the army is considered to be the invisible guiding hand in politics and holds considerable sway in internal security, foreign policy, and economic affairs, among other domains. 

Six bills were passed by the upper and lower houses on Monday evening, including one to increase the term of the services chiefs.

“In the said Act, in section 8A, in sub-section (1), for the expression “three (03)” the word “five (05)” shall be substituted,” read the bill, seeking to amend the Pakistan Army Act, 1952.

Similar bills were passed to increase the duration of the country’s naval and air force chiefs to five years also. 

“The purpose of these amendments are to make consistent the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 (XXXIX of 1952) The Pakistan Navy Ordinance, 1961 (Ordinance No. XXXV of 1961) and The Pakistan Air Force Act, 1953 (VI of 1953) with the maximum tenure of the Chief of the Army Staff, the Chief of the Naval Staff and the Chief of the Air Staff and to make consequential amendments for uniformity in the aforementioned laws.” 

Speaking outside parliament, the chairman of the opposition PTI party, Gohar Ali Khan, said:

“Today, democracy has been changed into a monarchy.”

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub Khan, said “modifying the service chiefs’ tenure is not a good thing for the country and the armed forces.”

The passage of the new bills follows controversial amendments made to the constitution last month, granting lawmakers the authority to nominate the chief justice of Pakistan, who previously used to be automatically appointed according to the principle of seniority.

The amendments allowed the government to bypass the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and appoint Justice Yahya Afridi as the country’s top judge, replacing former chief justice Qazi Faez Isa. 

The opposition and the legal fraternity had opposed the amendments, arguing that they were aimed at granting more power to the executive in making judicial appointments and curtailing the independence of the judiciary. The government denies this.


Pakistani forces kill six militants in shootouts near border with Afghanistan — military

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistani forces kill six militants in shootouts near border with Afghanistan — military

  • Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, has witnessed a number of attacks recently
  • Pakistan blames the surge in militancy on militants operating out of Afghanistan, Kabul denies the allegations

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces have killed six militants in two separate engagements in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Pakistani military said on Monday.
A militant was killed in an exchange of fire during an intelligence-based operation in North Waziristan’s Dosali area, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing.
In the second incident, Pakistani forces intercepted a group of militants while infiltrating the country’s border with Afghanistan in the South Waziristan district. Five militants were killed as a result.
“Pakistan has consistently been asking Interim Afghan Government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border,” the ISPR said in a statement.
“Interim Afghan Government is expected to fulfil its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by Khwarij [militants] for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which borders Afghanistan, has witnessed a number of attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups that targeted security forces convoys and check posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in recent months.
Pakistan has frequently accused neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups, urging the Taliban administration in Kabul to prevent its territory from being used by armed factions to launch cross-border attacks.
Afghan officials, however, deny involvement, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
 


Pakistan Navy test-fires ship-launched ballistic missile ranging 350 kilometers

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan Navy test-fires ship-launched ballistic missile ranging 350 kilometers

  • The missile is capable of striking land and sea targets with ‘high precision’
  • Pakistan, India consider their missile programs as deterrent against each other

KARACHI: Pakistan Navy has successfully test-fired a ship-launched ballistic missile having a range of 350 km and capable of striking both land and sea targets, it said on Monday.
Pakistan sees its missile development as a deterrent against nuclear-armed arch-foe India. Both countries have fought multiple wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.
The two South Asian neighbors have long been developing missiles of varying ranges in a bid to ensure deterrence against possible attacks from each other, with analysts often warning these developments could push the region into an arms race.
“Pakistan Navy conducted a successful flight test of an indigenously developed ship-launched ballistic missile,” the Directorate General of Public Relations (DGPR) of Pakistan Navy said in a statement.
“The weapon system with 350km range is capable of engaging land and sea targets with high precision.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikldB3jieWo
The flight test of the weapon system, equipped with a state-of-the-art navigation system and maneuverability features, was witnessed by Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf, senior naval officers, scientists and engineers.
President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir and Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Zaheer Ahmad Babar Sidhu congratulated the participating navy units and scientists on the development.
 
 


Qatar investment team due in Pakistan this month, PM Sharif says after Doha visit

Updated 04 November 2024
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Qatar investment team due in Pakistan this month, PM Sharif says after Doha visit

  • The statement comes days after Sharif visited Qatar seeking to bolster economic cooperation between both nations
  • Before arriving in Doha, Sharif attended the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh and met the Saudi Crown Prince

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Monday a team of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) will visit Pakistan this month to set up an information technology (IT) park in the South Asian country.
The statement came days after Sharif visited Qatar while seeking to bolster economic cooperation amid Pakistan’s efforts to boost foreign investment to stabilize its frail $350 billion economy.
Before arriving in Doha, Sharif attended the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he discussed trade and investment with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Speaking at a meeting of his cabinet, Sharif said a QIA team will visit Pakistan this month, while its chief of Asia-Pacific & Africa Investments, Faisal Bin Thani Al Thani, will also arrive in Islamabad by the end of this month.
“Qatar emir said the same thing. They also suggested setting up an IT park here [in Pakistan],” Sharif told his cabinet members in televised comments.
During his visit, Sharif led delegation-level talks with the Qatari emir before holding a separate meeting with him to discuss a wide array of issues.
“The leaders reviewed the entire spectrum of Pakistan-Qatar relations, exploring potential avenues for enhanced cooperation in trade, potential areas of investment, energy, and culture,” Sharif’s office said last week.
He also met a delegation of the Qatar Businessmen Association (QBA) and invited them to invest in Pakistan’s energy, infrastructure and technology sectors.
The developments came amid Pakistan’s attempts to increase trade and foreign investment after it narrowly escaped a default last year by securing a last-gasp $3 billion financial assistance package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The South Asian country has since sought to promote closer economic ties with regional and international allies to bolster its fragile economy, which has been suffering from a prolonged macroeconomic crisis.
 


Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 250 bps to 15%

Updated 04 November 2024
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Pakistan central bank cuts key rate by 250 bps to 15%

  • Monday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June, 100 in July and 200 in September
  • It takes the total policy rate cuts in the country to 700 bps in under five months

KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank cut its key policy rate by 250 basis points to 15 percent on Monday, it said in a statement, for a fourth straight reduction since June, as the country keeps up efforts to revive a sluggish economy with inflation easing.
Most respondents in a Reuters poll last week expected a cut of 200 bps after inflation moved down sharply from a multi-decade high of nearly 40 percent in May 2023, saying reductions were needed to bolster growth.
Average consumer price index inflation in the South Asian country is 8.7 percent in the current financial year, which started in July, the statistics bureau says. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects inflation to average 9.5 percent for the year ending June.
Monday’s move follows cuts of 150 bps in June, 100 bps in July, and 200 in September that have taken the rate from an all-time high of 22 percent, set in June 2023 and left unchanged for a year. It takes the total cuts to 700 bps in under five months.
October inflation came in at 7.2 percent, slightly above the government’s expectation of 6 percent to 7 percent. The finance ministry expects inflation to slow further to 5.5 percent to 6.5 percent in November.
However, inflation could pick up again in 2025, driven by electricity and gas price increases after a new $7-billion IMF bailout, and the potential impact of taxes on the retail, wholesale and the farm sector announced in the June budget to take effect in January 2025, some analysts say.