Rainfall in August, which recorded 24 % deficiency, was lowest in 19 years, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) mentioned on Friday.

Two main spells of weak monsoon prevailed over the nation — from August 9-16 and August 23-27 — when northwest, central and adjoining peninsular and west coast of India had subdued rainfall actions.

“During August 2021, rainfall over the country as a whole was below Long Period Average (LPA) by minus 24 percent. It is also lowest August rainfall in last 19 years, since 2002,” the IMD mentioned.

The Southwest Monsoon season formally commences from June 1 and lasts until September 30. The month of June recorded 10 % extra rainfall, however each July and August clocked deficiency of seven and 24 % respectively, in line with the IMD information.

The nation obtained 24 % lower than regular rainfall in August. Of the 4 meteorological divisions of the IMD, the central India division obtained 39 % much less. The division consists of a big swathe of space from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

The deficiency within the northwest India division, which includes northern Indian states, was 30 %.

The deficiency was 10 % within the south peninsula whereas the east and northeast division obtained two % extra rainfall than the traditional.

The IMD had predicted that the rainfall exercise was anticipated to be regular throughout August. It has now predicted above regular precipitation in September.

The climate forecasting company mentioned intra-seasonal variation when it comes to week by week rainfall variation over India reveals that monsoon rainfall actions had been largely subdued consecutively for 3 weeks — for week ending on August 11, August 18 and August 25 — when all India weekly cumulative rainfall for the nation as an entire was 35 %, 36 % and 21 %, respectively, beneath its Long Period Average (LPA).

The formation of much less variety of low stress techniques (PLS) and their lesser variety of days in comparison with the climatology and absence of their longer westward actions throughout the month of August 2021 contributed to the big poor rainfall in central India in addition to all India, the IMD mentioned.

It mentioned unfavorable Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) over tropical Indian Ocean, unfavourable for Indian monsoon prevailed all through the month of the August, which additionally contributed to poor rainfall over India within the month.

A unfavorable IOD is related to the heating of waters of the Indian Ocean. 

(PTI)