India / Heavy rain predicted in over 20 states & UTs till October 21; list released

New Delhi: Intense rainfall will continue over different parts of the country till October 21, India Meteorological Department said in a statement on Sunday. In its latest forecast, the weather department stated that intense rainfall activity will continue over northwest India till October 19 due to the western disturbance over Afghanistan and neighbouring regions, before reducing significantly. The low pressure area over southeast Arabian Sea and adjoining Kerala has weakened, hence rainfall activity over Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry is expected to abate from October 17, S

Meanwhile, due to strong easterly and from Bay of Bengal, heavy rainfall activity is likely to continue over eastern India till October 20. Strong southerly-southeasterly winds from Bay of Bengal will create heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely over northeast India till October 21, the weather man said.

The western disturbance over Afghanistan and neighbouring countries is interacting with easterlies from Bay of Bengal. The weather system is likely to cause fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places over Uttarakhand and west Uttar Pradesh during October 17 to 19; over Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh and East Uttar Pradesh on October 17 and 18; over Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit-Baltistan, Muzaffarabad, Punjab and northeast Rajasthan on October 17. Moderate rainfall is likely over Delhi on October 17. Uttarakhand and west Uttar Pradesh will receive isolated heavy rainfall on October 18.

The diminishing low pressure area over southeast Arabian Sea and Kerala has become less marked now, IMD said. Under its influence, isolated heavy rainfall is likely over coastal Karnataka, Kerala, Mahe, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal on October 17, with significant reduction thereafter. A fresh spell of easterly wave is likely to affect south peninsular India from October 20. It will cause fairly widespread rainfall with isolated heavy falls over these regions from October 20 and will last for three to four days.

Strong easterly winds from Bay of Bengal will lead to heavy spell of rainfall activity over east India till October 20. Fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall with heavy rainfall at isolated places is very likely over Odisha on October 17 and 18; over Gangetic West Bengal during October 17 to 20; over sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim during October 18 to 20; over Jharkhand on October 18 to 19; and Bihar on October 19. Isolated very heavy rainfall is also very likely over Gangetic West Bengal on October 17 and 18; and over sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim on October 19 and 20.

Northeast India will experience strong southerly-southeasterly winds from Bay of Bengal. It will cause fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall with heavy rainfall at Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura during October 18 to 20; and over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya during October 18 to 21. Isolated very heavy rainfall is also very likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya on October 19 and 20, IMD said.