Pakistani authorities have put rescue services on high alert after heavy rains, thunderstorms and lightning wreaked havoc across the country.

The National Disaster Management Authority asked emergency services to be vigilant as more severe weather gathers.

The death toll from the heavy rains over the past four days rose to 50, according to officials from provincial wings of the authority on Tuesday.

About 21 people, including seven children, were killed when lightning struck in central Punjab province.

Another 21 people were killed in the north-western province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while eight perished in the southern province of Balochistan.

The weather has put the harvesting of wheat crops on 

hold in Punjab.

It is feared that the upcoming spell of rains starting from Thursday would not only further delay the harvesting but would also do damage to the crop.

Heavy rainfall, thunderstorms and flooding are unusual in the South Asian region, one of the most populous in the world, outside of the monsoon season between July and September.

Pakistan is responsible for less than one per cent of global carbon emissions, but is among the top 10 most climate-vulnerable nations.

More than 2,000 people were killed by catastrophic floods and subsequent outbreak of diseases in Pakistan in 2022 when a third of the country was submerged, affecting 33 million people.

(dpa/NAN)