Referring to statistics available till July 9, India Meteorological (IMD) has said that India has wiped out its rainfall deficit, with a current rainfall surplus of 2 percent. While the north-western region has exceeded the monsoon forecast by 59 percent, certain areas in east, north-east, and south peninsular India continue to face a deficit in rainfall. Central India, on the other hand, has neither experienced a deficit nor an excess of rainfall.

IMD's senior scientist Dr. Soma Sen Roy attributed the current spate of heavy rainfall over North and North-west India to interaction of westerlies with south-easterly monsoon. She explained the interaction of clouds has been taking place in a north-south oriented zone for the last 2 days, where neither system is allowing the other to move, hence leading to heavy rainfall over a specific region.

She further told CNBC-TV18 that the heavy rainfall is likely to continue, and may decrease over Himachal Pradesh by July 11, as the clouds are expected to shift eastwards. However, IMD has forecast very heavy rainfall till July 11 for Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and parts of Haryana, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Dr. Roy said that many past records of rainfall have been breached in the past 3 days.

With heavy rain lashing several parts of northwest India on Saturday and Sunday, Delhi saw 153 mm of rain on Sunday, which is the highest in a single day in July since 1982.

The heavy rains caused waterlogging in several areas of Delhi resulting in significant traffic disruptions, causing inconvenience for commuters across the city. In addition to the waterlogging woes, the Chhath Puja ghat located on the banks of the Yamuna river in Delhi has been partially submerged in water. The rising water levels have raised concerns about the smooth conduct of the upcoming Chhath Puja festivities, which are celebrated on the riverbanks.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) has issued a warning as the water level in the Yamuna river has crossed the danger mark in Delhi. This development has heightened concerns about potential floods and the impact on low-lying areas along the riverbanks. The CWC has also reported that water levels near the danger mark have been observed at most of its monitoring stations in various water bodies across Northern India.

While the IMD has forecast light rain/thundershowers in Delhi for the next 7 days, it issued a red alert for Himachal Pradesh with a forecast of very heavy rainfall over 204.4 mm in the next 24 hours, including a warning for a potential impact like landslides and localized flooding.

First Published:Jul 11, 2023 2:53 PM IST