South Bengal to face rising heat, parts of N Bengal brace for heavy rain: MeT

Kolkata: The Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore predicted that temperature will rise by 3-4 degrees in several south Bengal districts, bringing heat and discomfort in the next couple of days.

There is no chance of heavy rainfall in South Bengal in the next couple of days. The MeT office had earlier hinted that the amount of rain with thunderstorms will decrease over the weekend. Though scattered rainfall may occur in some pockets of South Bengal on Monday. There is a high chance of rain with thunderstorms in Howrah, South 24-Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Birbhum, and Murshidabad. The chance of rain will decrease again from Tuesday.

According to the MeT office, a low-pressure area is moving from Chhattisgarh towards Madhya Pradesh. It will be located in East Madhya Pradesh within the next 24 hours. The monsoon trough is closer to Bengal, extending from Chandbali in Odisha to the Northwest Bay of Bengal.

“A trough extends from the Arabian Sea across the low-pressure area and cyclonic circulation to the Northwest Bay of Bengal. Scattered light to moderate rain with thunderstorms is expected in all districts of North Bengal,” a weather expert said.

The MeT office forecast that heavy rain will continue sporadically in some areas of North Bengal with gusty winds with speeds of 30 to 40 kmph. Heavy rain is likely to happen in Alipurduar district. Thunderstorms and rain may also happen in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, and North Dinajpur.

Sporadic heavy rain may occur in the upper districts from Sunday to Wednesday. Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri districts are most likely to experience heavy rainfall. Additionally, sporadic heavy rain may occur for a couple of days in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Cooch Behar. The city received record rainfall of 634 mm in July, the highest in the past five years. The city receives 571 mm of rainfall on average in July every year.

South Bengal received 64 per cent higher rainfall in July this year compared to the corresponding month in the past five years. An average rainfall in the districts of South Bengal stood at 712 mm in July this year which was much higher.