Rain is Blessing or Curse in Pakistan by KAINAT MUNIBA KHAN

Pakistan is a place where colours keep changing. It’s often said that we crave for things that we don’t have, its human psyche. Likewise, rain is one of the most desirable things, and more so here because it comes for short intervals of time. While it is only in the form of showers, we enjoy it a lot but as soon as it turns to rain heavily, we are under a lot of stress as rain is unpredictable, with no specified dimensions.

Areas like Thar need rain and depend upon it to turn into paradise. After the rains, sand dunes become lush green fields, soothing one's eyes. Rain water bestows the desert with valuable agricultural products. No doubt, ours is an agricultural country with many important crops grown here and agriculture plays an important part in our economy. Majority of people in rural areas are farmers too. Many areas lack proper irrigation systems and therefore rain is much desired in such areas, as almost everywhere else.

The sound of rain charges up everyone and children in particular like to enjoy getting wet in rain and playing in the puddles that are created by rainwater. Rain simply beautifies the atmosphere all around us — provided it is in reasonable amount. Sometimes it happens that some areas become so try that people there pray for rain to quench the thirst of both animals and the land. And when it starts to rain and rain and rain, the very same areas become flooded and people face a lot of destruction and loss. Even in metropolitan cities like Karachi, life becomes difficult as roads get flooded and water enters so many homes. When water level rises, it can be the scariest nightmare you'd come across. How’d you feel when your loved ones are homeless and you have nothing expect what you are wearing?

Like last year, this year too our country had to face floods in many places, especially rural Sindh. Roads, homes, fields, vehicles, etc., everything has been washed away with the rising level of rainwater. Economically, once again we are hit terribly by a natural disaster after the flood of 2010. We had barely time to overcome last year’s miseries and again we are pushed into the nooks of darkness. Many districts of Sindh — Hyderabad, Badin, Thatta, Mithi, Umerkot, etc. — are flooded and now many infections are appearing in those areas. Poor drainage system has given rainwater no way out, and the poor public is facing the music. Newspapers and news channels are giving a lot of coverage to the tragedy produced by rain and also showed images of how some people enjoyed getting drenched in the rain where there was no flooding. Things differ with respect to places, people and circumstances. What can be the solution of this frightening economic, social, financial and agricultural problem? What will happen to the people who have no home to sleep, no food to eat, no one to look after them? We need to act today because if we don’t, for many of us tomorrow may never come. Monsoon rains are a yearly phenomenon and we need to take proper measures to create drainage for rainwater, both in urban and rural areas. We know the problem, we know the solution, we only need to act, and act now!