Chandigarh wettest in country this January
The daily countrywide data compiled by IMD, Delhi, shows that Chandigarh has received the highest rain in January, which is already 749% above normal, with a week left
With another spell of 38.3mm rain between Sunday night and Monday morning, and 203.9mm rain so far this month, Chandigarh has become the wettest among all states and union territories of the country in January, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The daily countrywide data compiled by IMD, Delhi, shows that Chandigarh has received the highest rain in January, which is already 749% above normal with a week to go, followed by Himachal Pradesh with 166.4mm, Jammu and Kashmir with 162mm, Punjab with 104.1mm and Uttarakhand with 100.7mm.
Due to the strong western disturbances (WD) this month, the north-west region of India received the most rain.
The 203.9mm rain in Chandigarh this month is also the highest since IMD started maintaining records for the city in 1953.
It is also more than the showers recorded in any monsoon month in 2021. Also around 28% of the total 735.5mm rain recorded in 2021 has already been witnessed in the first 24 days of 2022.
Meanwhile, in the region, Punjab has received 104.1mm rain this month, highest since 1957, when 108mm rain was recorded, and third highest of all time, as per IMD records.
In Haryana, the 69.2mm rain this month is the highest since 1911, when 70.3mm rain was received, and the fourth highest ever.
According to IMD Chandigarh director Manmohan Singh, the unique location of Chandigarh and the districts around it, in the foothills of the Himalayas, led to high rainfall in January. “Though another WD is approaching the region, it is unlikely to have similar effect, but there are chances of light rain towards the end of the month,” said Singh.
Dry weather likely in coming days
Singh added that dry weather can be expected for some days. “But there are chances of fog formation from Tuesday morning onwards due to moisture in the air. With the skies clearing up, the minimum temperature can also drop by 4-6 degrees in the coming days,” he said.
As the sky cleared up towards Monday afternoon, the maximum temperature rose from 12°C on Sunday to 14°C on Monday, but was still 6.3 degrees below normal.
The minimum temperature remained unchanged at 10.7°C, 5.1 degrees above normal. In the next three days, the day temperature will remain around 15°C and the night temperature around 8-10°C.