li Zeb, an engineer by profession and a resident of Islamabad, the green and hilly capital of Pakistan, has been observing disturbing weather patterns in the area for the past few years.

“I have recently observed patterns of rising temperature, unpredicted rains and thunderstorms,” he tells The News on Sunday. “The heatwave, witnessed a few days ago, was unusual and longer than those during the previous years.”

The region has witnessed unexpected temperature and weather cycles starting from January last year. There have been snowfalls, heatwaves, wildfires, glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), and extreme rainfalls.

South Asia is considered one of the most vulnerable regions faced with the threat of climate change. In Pakistan, specifically, it is affecting big cities, including Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad.

An Asian Development Bank (ADB) report has described Pakistan as a country that may face major climate change challenges. In the last 50 years, the annual mean temperature in Pakistan has risen by roughly 0.5 degree Celsius. The number of heatwave days per year has increased nearly fivefold over the last three decades.

Islamabad, a city with a population of over two million, has been expanding horizontally, impacting its green hills and wilderness. Even the National Park (Margalla Hills) area is not safe from the menace of development, the residents worry. They say the development poses serious dangers to the environment, and may lead to extreme climate events.

“We are facing different scenarios of climate change in the region altering the weather patterns. These include extreme weather frequency, flash floods, urban flooding, extreme rainfall,” says Zaheer Babar, director of the Pakistan Meteorological Department, Islamabad. “And our policy neglect is complimenting these patterns.” Preparedness remains questionable as the reaction time to such changes is delayed on part of the society and the government, he says.

Two years ago, Japan funded a radar system at the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) for more effective monitoring and data compilation.

Dr Ejaz Ahmad, an environmentalist, says early monsoon, severe hot weather in June, are among the mentionable changes in the weather patterns. “We see unpredictable and irregular cycles and spells of heat and cold. This will also impact health and agriculture in the area.”

Due to the changing patterns, he says, there will be more challenges in the future. He says this might affect food security and water storage. “We need to review our policies, lifestyle and living patterns and stop horizontal development to save the tress, hills and greenery and agriculture.”

“Actually, discomfort index is getting high every year,” says Dr Ghulam Rasul, a former director general of the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD). “This discomfort can be felt when there is high humidity and high temperature.” He says that heatwave spells are also expanding over time and rainfall patterns changing rapidly.

“This situation is affecting the sowing of seasonal crops and causing health issues,” he says blaming continuous urbanisation as one of the main reasons behind these changes.

Dr Rasul calls for reviewing legislation for housing societies and urbanisation models to save growing cities like Islamabad.

“If weather patterns continue changing like this, and we do not learn and change our policies, our living patterns, and continue to spread horizontally, this beautiful city will become unmanageable,” he says. “It will lose its beauty.”

The writer can be reached at vaqargillani@gmail.com. He tweets at @waqargillani