Maha received 26% excess rainfall this monsoon
Maharashtra, experiencing ‘above normal’ category rainfall, has received 26% excess rainfall this monsoon between June 1 and September 30
PUNE: In keeping with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast, Maharashtra, experiencing ‘above normal’ category rainfall, has received 26% excess rainfall this monsoon between June 1 and September 30. Maharashtra is among eight states in the country that have received ‘above normal’ category rainfall this monsoon. Both Pune- district and city have also experienced ‘above normal’ category rainfall this monsoon.
The southwest monsoon officially ends on September 30. This monsoon, Maharashtra recorded 1252.1 mm cumulative rainfall against the normal rainfall of 995.5 mm which is 26% higher than the normal rainfall. Although the state experienced excess category rainfall throughout the monsoon and majority of the districts recorded above normal rainfall, there were several districts in the Vidarbha, Marathwada and central Maharashtra sub-divisions that recorded (slightly higher than usual) normal category rainfall. Only Hingoli district recorded a serious rainfall deficit of 35% with 489.9 mm rainfall recorded against the normal rainfall of 758.3 mm. Along with Maharashtra, Delhi, Sikkim, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana too received above normal rainfall.
Due to strong and frequent weather systems this year, Maharashtra received good rainfall both before and during the monsoon. In June, the state received slightly above normal category rain, despite 12 districts recording a rainfall deficiency. In July too, except for Hingoli district, all other districts in the state experienced excess to large excess category rainfall, which resulted in above normal category rainfall in the state as a whole. In August, while there was a break of over one week in the monsoon in many areas, some districts in Vidarbha and Marathwada experienced good amount of rainfall and by the end of August, the monsoon revival in other parts of the state brought excess category rainfall. In September too, systems developed in the Bay of Bengal brought good amount of rainfall in the state, with some areas in Marathwada and Vidarbha getting more rainfall during this period.
Pune, both the city and district, received good amount of rainfall in all four months of the southwest monsoon. While there was widespread rainfall in July in the entire district, there were several extreme weather events with intense category rainfall in various parts of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad cities in June, August and September. As per the IMD data, Pune city received 1133.1 mm rainfall this monsoon which is nearly 598.8 mm more than normal rainfall.
While the south-west monsoon officially ends on September 30, the monsoon is yet to withdraw from Maharashtra. The normal date for monsoon withdrawal in the state is October 7 while for Pune, it is October 7. Anupam Kashyapi, former head of the weather forecasting division, IMD Pune, said, “The extended range forecast indicates that there might be a delay in monsoon withdrawal in Pune. There is very less chance of withdrawal before October 10.”