IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India

IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India
Motorists caught in a downpour in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram. Photo: Manorama

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday said that large parts of the country are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall in the coming days.

Fairly widespread rainfall with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places are very likely over major parts of north India -- Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, east Rajasthan -- during the next two days and decrease thereafter, it said.

Several parts of western India are also expected to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall. This includes Gujarat, Goa, Konkan, the ghat areas of central Maharashtra, and parts of central India during next four-five days, the IMD said.

"Isolated extremely heavy falls are also likely over Gujarat state during next two-three days and over ghat areas of central Maharashtra during next 24 hours," it said, adding fairly widespread rainfall with heavy to very heavy falls are likely over Odisha, Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Telangana during the next two-three days.

IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India
Dark skies loom over the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

In Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said his government will ensure rehabilitation of the families of those who died in the landslide in Idukki district. The death toll in the landslip stands at 55. Rescue operations are underway and a search is on for 15 more missing people.

In Delhi, Thursday's rainfall inundated low-lying areas and threw traffic out of gear. According to the IMD, the Ayanagar weather station recorded 106.9 mm rainfall, the maximum in the city, since Wednesday morning.

In Maharashtra, heavy rains lashed isolated parts of Mumbai and neighbouring Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts since Wednesday. The weather office predicted more showers in the Konkan region and some areas in the central part of the state over the next one day.

IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India
Scenes from Mumbai: Children wade through knee-deep water on they way to school. In the background: Two teenagers on a bike attempt a 'wheelie'.

The IMD has issued an 'orange alert' of very heavy rainfall in eight districts of Madhya Pradesh till Friday morning.

Some isolated places in Chhindwara, Balaghat, Betul, Harda, Khandwa, Alirajpur, Jhabua and Dhar districts are likely to receive very heavy rainfall till Friday morning, it said.

Besides, there is a 'yellow warning' of heavy rainfall in 15 more districts.

IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India
Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh has launched an ambitious Monsoon Tourism program. Photo: Kanha National Park.

A flood-related death was reported in Bihar's Darbhanga district, taking the toll in the state to 25. The number of people hit by the floods stands at 77.77 lakh. Sixteen districts in the state are affected by the deluge, though inundation by overflowing rivers with origins in Nepal appeared to have slowed down.

In Assam, the flood situation improved, with the water receding from Morigaon district, though 11,262 people in 40 villages of Dhemaji and Baksa districts are still affected, an official bulletin said.

The death toll due to flood and landslides in the state stands at 136. The Brahmaputra river is flowing above the danger mark at Nimatighat in Jorhat district, while its tributaries Jia Bharali and Beki are flowing above the red marks at two places.

There was light to moderate rain and thundershowers at most places in Uttar Pradesh, with extremely heavy rainfall at isolated areas in the eastern part.

IMD forecasts heavy rainfall across large swathes of India
Flood situation in Assam improved significantly over the last couple of days.

The Lucknow weather office said heavy rain occurred at isolated places in the western part of Uttar Pradesh, and thunderstorm accompanied with lightning was reported from some areas in the state.

Heavy rains lashed most parts of Haryana and Punjab, leading to a drop in maximum temperatures in the region.

In Haryana, heavy rains led to waterlogging in some low-lying areas, including in Sonipat and Ambala districts. Rains also lashed Panchkula, Gurgaon, Kaithal, Kurukshetra, Panipat and Karnal.

In Punjab, Patiala, Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Mohali were among the places that saw rainfall. In Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, heavy rains caused power breakdown in some areas.

(With inputs from PTI)

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