Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology at the IMD, stated that the southwest monsoon will stay active across most parts of the country until August 7. Afterward, rainfall activity is expected to shift to the foothills of the Himalayas.
Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology at the India Meteorological Department (IMD), announced on Thursday that the country will experience normal to above-normal rainfall during the remaining two months of the ongoing monsoon season. The all-India normal rainfall for August and September is 422.8 mm, based on 1971-2020 data, and forecasts indicate that the country will receive 106% of this long-period average during these months.
“The southwest monsoon will remain active over most parts of the country until August 7. Afterward, rainfall will primarily occur along the plains of north India,” Mohapatra said.
Following widespread rainfall in July, particularly in the south peninsular and central regions, these areas might experience subdued rainfall in August due to the monsoon ‘break’ phase. During this phase, rainfall activity typically shifts to the foothills of the Himalayas and the plains of north India.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah mentioned in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that a seven-day advance rainfall warning had been issued to Kerala. Mohapatra reiterated that weather warnings have been shared since July 23, indicating the possibility of continuous heavy rainfall in the state, including extreme rainfall of over 200 mm.
Since Wednesday evening, parts of Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and surrounding areas have experienced heavy rainfall, leading to waterlogging and inundation of several roads and buildings. However, the IMD refuted claims of a cloudburst event in Delhi or Himachal Pradesh.
“There was no cloudburst in Delhi or Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday. An ‘orange’ alert was issued for Delhi weather on July 30 and 31, warning of heavy rainfall. Disaster management teams should take measures when an ‘orange’ alert is issued and not wait for it to be upgraded to a ‘red’ alert,” Mohapatra said.
The recent rainfall is attributed to the northward shift of the monsoon trough, bringing rainfall activity closer to the plains of north India.
Regarding the overall monsoon season, IMD officials noted that northwest, east, and northeast India remain rainfall deficient, which was reflected in the temperature patterns last month. These regions, particularly east, northeast, and central India, experienced their warmest July nights (in terms of minimum temperatures) since 1901. July was also the second warmest for northwest India and the third warmest for the south peninsular region in 123 years, according to IMD data.
The west coast experienced extremely heavy rain spells in July, with 193 events of rainfall exceeding 204 mm and 1,030 events of very heavy rainfall.
