Peshawar: At least 20 people were killed and 80 were hurt when torrential rains swept through Pakistan's northwest on Saturday, according to authorities.

According to senior rescue officer Khateer Ahmed, hail, rain and storms all hit the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province's Bannu, Lakki Marwat, and Karak districts, uprooting trees and bringing down electrical transmission towers.

According to Ahmed, authorities were working to give the injured emergency relief. Over 1,700 people were killed in Pakistan last year as a result of monsoon rains and flooding, which also affected about 33 million people and forced nearly 8 million to leave their homes.

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The government set aside $1.3 billion for climate resilience in its draught national budget, which was unveiled on Friday, to lessen the effects of natural disasters.

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On Saturday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the storm's fatalities and ordered officials to speed up the relief effort.

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In the meantime, Sharif gave the go-ahead for emergency preparations as Cyclone Biparjoy in the Arabian Sea approached. According to Pakistan's disaster management organisation, the "severe and intense" cyclone had wind speeds of 150 kilometres per hour (93 miles per hour) and was headed south.