Karachi is witnessing its driest monsoon spell in the last two decades with nearly zero millimetres (mm) of precipitation being recorded so far by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).The absence of rainfall is a matter of concern for environmentalists as the dry spell is likely to decrease the underground water level raise the level of pollutants in the atmosphere. The Hub Dam, which supplies water to a large area of the city, is also likely to reach its dead level soon as there have not been enough rains to fill it.The monsoon season in the provincial capital starts in July and lasts till the middle of September. No significant rainfall has been recorded till now and the season is going to end in around two weeks.Historical trendsCommenting on the situation, PMD Director Abdul Rashid explained that it is not the first time that ‘trace rainfall’ has been recorded in the monsoon season. Trace rainfall, he explained, is when the rain is recorded at less than 0.1mm.According to Rashid, 0mm of rainfall was recorded in Karachi in the monsoon seasons of 1987 and 1991, while 1994 was another year in which the city received scanty rainfall with the total precipitation during monsoon recorded at 0.2mm. Around 50 years back, 1964 was another dry year with 0.5mm of rainfall during monsoon.
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