Maharashtra gets 95% less rain in October, 12 districts record none at all

Maharashtra saw sudden rain in late October and early November. Pune, Ahilyanagar and Satara districts received good showers, giving people troubled by the humid weather some relief. The figures, however, show that the state received very little rain through October as a whole. Rainfall was 95 per cent below average, raising fears that the water shortage will worsen.

Maharashtra should have received an average of 74 mm of rain in October. Only 3.6 mm was recorded, a deficit of 95 per cent. Most striking, 12 districts in the state did not receive a single drop in the entire month, a deficit of 100 per cent.

The districts that recorded zero rainfall in October are Mumbai city, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nandurbar, Solapur, Beed, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Dharashiv, Hingoli, Jalna, Latur and Parbhani. Mumbai city should have received an average of 73.5 mm this month, but there was no rain at all. Marathwada, too, did not get even a millimetre of rain through the month.

By division, Mumbai suburban was expected to get 81.2 mm and received 14.6 mm, a deficit of 82 per cent. Central Maharashtra got 4.1 mm against 77.9 mm, a deficit of 95 per cent. Vidarbha was expected to receive 57.8 mm but got only 2.2 mm, 96 per cent less. Konkan and Goa recorded 19.1 mm against 116.4 mm, a deficit of 84 per cent.

The situation in Konkan was also poor. Rainfall was 96 per cent below normal in Palghar and Raigad districts, while Thane district recorded a deficit of 84 per cent.

After rain stayed away through October, parts of the state saw a heavy spell at the start of November. Pune, Ahilyanagar and Satara districts had torrential rain. The sudden downpour submerged roads in many places, waterlogging disrupted traffic and people had to rush for cover. Even so, it brought some relief to people suffering from the humidity.

Unseasonal rain is falling in places, but it has not made up the large October deficit. Water shortage persists in many areas, especially in Marathwada and Vidarbha. Water planning will now be crucial for farmers, the general public and the administration alike. How much more rain falls in November will decide how severe the shortage becomes and how agriculture fares.