KARACHI -- Heavy Monsoon rains which have caused havoc in Northern Pakistan could have the long-term benefit of ending a severe drought which is costing the country millions of dollars, officials said Tuesday.

Pakistan's northern areas and the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi received the heaviest rain in 100 years on Monday, filling almost empty dams to satisfactory levels.

"Major water reservoirs are now at satisfactory levels and we are fully able to meet our current requirements," Ministry of Water and Power Chief Engineering Advisor Riaz Ahmed Khan told AFP.

Up to 200 people have died in rain-related incidents since Monday morning, mostly flash floods and landslides, but weather officials said the silver lining to the monsoon could be an end to the drought.

The drought, now in its third year, is forecast to cost the economy around a billion dollars in the year to June 2002, mainly due to lost revenue in the agriculture sector.

"The drought is over now, except in some southwestern parts of Baluchistan Province," Weather Forecast Office Director General Qamaruz Zaman said.

Zaman said the rain would help recharge underground water sources in the Thar and Cholistan deserts of Sindh and Punjab provinces, the two most drought-affected areas.

But officials said even with the major dams at satisfactory levels, Pakistan's water demands far outstripped its storage capacity.

Successive governments have failed to evolve a consensus among the four provinces over constructing new dams to solve the water crisis.