India to see widespread rainfall during the week: IMD

New Delhi: According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), several parts of India are likely to experience heavy rain during the week, with the Southwest Monsoon remaining active over large parts of the country. Northwest, Central, East and Northeast India are expected to witness heavy rainfall, while the southern peninsula may see more scattered showers.

Over East India, Odisha is likely to receive isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall from August 28-31, with heavy rain likely on September 1-2. Gangetic West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand are likely to experience isolated heavy rains from August 28 to 31. Prolonged rainfall could increase the risk of localized flooding, waterlogging and disruption in vulnerable areas.

Fairly widespread to widespread rain is likely to hit several parts of northwest, central and northeast India in the coming week, the Met Office said.

In the northwest, Uttarakhand is likely to witness widespread rains from August 28 to September 2, while Himachal Pradesh may experience similar showers from August 30 to September 2. Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and adjoining areas may experience widespread rainfall on August 31 and September 1. East Uttar Pradesh may experience similar conditions on September 2, the IMD said.

In central India, Chhattisgarh is likely to receive moderate to widespread rainfall during the period from August 28 to September 2. East Madhya Pradesh is expected to witness such rainfall during 29-29. August and again on 1-2 September. Vidarbha may receive widespread showers on August 28 and September 2.

Northeast India is also likely to remain wet, with Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura receiving widespread rains till September 2. Assam and Meghalaya may experience widespread rains during 29-31. august

In South India, rainfall is expected to remain mostly isolated to scattered over Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Rayalaseema, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and adjoining regions. Kerala and Lakshadweep are likely to receive widespread rainfall during August 28-30, while coastal Karnataka could witness widespread showers till September 2.

Meanwhile, east Madhya Pradesh has received extremely heavy rainfall of at least 21 cm in the last 24 hours, the IMD said on Thursday evening. Very heavy rainfall of 12-20 cm was recorded over Uttar Pradesh and West Madhya Pradesh. Heavy rainfall of 7-11 cm was also reported from other regions including Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Gangetic West Bengal, Uttarakhand and Kerala.

Cumulatively, from 1 June to 26 August, India received 577.8 mm of rainfall, which is 13% below the long-term average. Southwest monsoon rain is crucial for India’s irrigation-dependent rural areas, which the consumer industry is watching closely to drive demand.