E-Paper
India drenched in Tauktae aftermath
Possibly due to different reasons – either a large excess rainfall because of proximity to the cyclone or due to historical absence of rainfall in this period – the recent rain spell broke all-time records in several regions.
Cyclone Tauktae, which made landfall in Gujarat late on Monday evening, has been called the most powerful Arabian Sea cyclone in over two decades. It caused rainfall not seen this time of the year not just along the western coast, but also inland. Here’s how unprecedented the rainfall was in different parts of India.
25 states and UTs saw above normal rainfall
The IMD classifies a 20% or more departure from the long period average – the average rainfall from 1961 to 2010 – as rainfall as ‘abnormal’. If the departure is 20% to 59%, it is said to be ‘excess’, and it is 60% or more, the rainfall is said to be in ‘large excess’. For the May 16 to May 21 period (the data is collated for the 24-hour period ending at 8.30am), 25 states recorded ‘above normal’ rainfall. While five states saw just excess rainfall or a departure of just 20% to 59%, 20 states and union territories (UTs) witnessed ‘large excess’. However, even this large excess rainfall was of varying degrees in different areas. In Gujarat, where the cyclone made landfall, the rainfall for this period has been 3,620% above normal, for instance. Landlocked states like Delhi and Madhya Pradesh, where rainfall is not common this time of the year, recorded rainfall 2,000% above normal.
Highest ever rainfall in 8 states and UTs
Possibly due to different reasons – either a large excess rainfall because of proximity to the cyclone or due to historical absence of rainfall in this period – the recent rain spell broke all-time records in several regions. In eight states and UTs – Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Goa and Dadra & Nagar Haveli – the rainfall was the highest ever since 1901, the earliest year for which data is available from IMD. In Gujarat, the 48mm rain in this period was the second highest since 1933. To be sure, the 48mm rainfall in Gujarat is the average for the entire state. Coastal areas are likely to have seen much higher rainfall than inland areas.
In Delhi, 3rd wettest non-monsoon day of all time
Delhi saw incessant rain on Wednesday and Thursday – for the 24-hour period from 8.30am on May 19 to 8.30am on May 20, 80.21 mm rainfall took place in the city-state. Looking at all-time records (in the 9,893 days since January 1, 1901), this is the 55th highest single-day rainfall ever recorded in the city. Most of the 54 days that have seen higher rainfall than the current spell always fell during the monsoon period (June to September), when such rain is expected. Outside of monsoon months, only two days have seen a higher rainfall in the city – on October 9, 1956 and October 2, 2010.
