Clearance efforts afoot as landslides block Gilgit-Baltistan roads.

PESHAWAR -- As rain-triggered landslides have blocked a major road at multiple locations in the upper parts of the country between Gilgit and Skardu, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has warned the departments concerned to remain alert in the wake of a series of heavy rains in the country from Monday to Wednesday that may cause further landsliding and urban flooding.

Also on Monday, intermittent rain continued to lash the upper parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to the latest advisory issued by the Pakistan Meteorological Department, the series of torrential rains with winds and thundershowers, beginning in upper and central parts of the country from Monday, will continue till Wednesday. All provincial departments, National Highway Authority, Frontier Works Organisation and other institutions have been asked to remain alert and take precautionary measures.

The new rain spell might trigger landslides in vulnerable areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Galiyat, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, and generate flash floods in the local nullahs in Rawalpindi/Islamabad, KP, Punjab, Kashmir, GB and northeast Balochistan where windstorms may damage dilapidated structures.

The NDMA has also advised those residing in low-lying areas to immediately report any emergency situation.

'[The weather pattern] may cause urban flooding in Peshawar, Mardan, Nowshera, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Gujranwala and Lahore during the forecast period,' the Met Office warned, advising travellers and tourists to remain extra cautious during the forecast period and avoid unnecessary travel.

The Met Office also expected the monsoon to set in during the last week of June.

The monsoon rainfall is expected to be above normal over Punjab and Sindh, and slightly above normal over the remaining parts of the country. The first phase of monsoon (July 1 to mid-Aug) is expected to be wet as compared to the last phase (mid-Aug to end-Sept).

Skardu road blockades

Over the last 24 hours, Skardu Deputy Commissioner Kareem Dad Chughtai has been tweeting pictures of landslide-induced blockade of the Jaglot-Skardu road at multiple points. On Monday, he said the 160-kilometre patch that connected Gilgit and Skardu, and was a major link with the Karakoram Highway, was blocked at Chamachu, Maloppa, Tormik and other areas of Skardu following torrential rains.

He further said the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) was working to clear the road, and advised tourists against taking the route...