Heat and humidity here to stay even as second pre-monsoon rain drenches Kolkata

Kolkata: Various South Bengal districts which continued to burn in the scorching summer heat throughout the day on Wednesday, got some relief after a spell of rain hit the city and other parts of South Bengal on Wednesday evening.

Another spell on Tuesday had brought temporary relief for city dwellers from the hot and humid condition on Tuesday afternoon, but the discomfort level started mounting from Wednesday morning. With the humidity shooting up, people in South Bengal were reeling until a moderate shower drenched various parts of the city at around 6 pm on Wednesday.

The Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore predicted that various districts in South Bengal including the city may receive some scattered rainfall in the next 24 hours, due to a low pressure trough covering long stretches between Uttar Pradesh and Bengal.

The low pressure trough may further intensify in the next 24 hours, bringing rainfall and thundershowers in some parts.

The Met office also said that rain may provide temporary relief to the people from the heat, but a permanent solution seems elusive at least for the next 3-4 days, after which monsoon is expected to arrive in South Bengal.

According to the MeT department officials, the arrival of monsoon in South Bengal is late this year. In 2005 monsoon had arrived in South Bengal on June 20, while in 1983 it entered the area on June 26.

A heat wave has been prevailing in all the Western districts like Purulia, Bankura, West Midnapore, Jhargram, Birbhum and West Burdwan. A high level of humidity has also been affecting people in all the districts of South Bengal.

The Regional Meteorological Centre on Wednesday sounded a heat wave alert for the Western districts of the state for the next couple of days as well. Apart from the Western districts, hot and humid conditions will also prevail in various South Bengal districts, as the mercury is set to rise.

"Scattered rainfall is likely in some parts of South Bengal, but such drizzles will not bring any considerable respite from the heat. Districts such as Nadia, Murshidabad, North 24-Parganas, Hooghly and Howrah will also witness high temperature. High humidity along with heat will add to the discomfort," a weather official said.

The temperature in the Western districts is likely to hover around 39-41 degree Celsius in the next 48 hours, while Real Feel temperature may be slightly higher due to high-level of humidity in the air.

On the other hand, all the North Bengal districts continue to receive the rainfall as monsoon had already made its presence felt there.