Monsoon starts withdrawing from Maharashtra, yellow alert for heavy rain in 7 districts

The monsoon has begun its withdrawal from Maharashtra, with the weather changing rapidly across the state. According to the latest update from the weather department, some parts of the state will see rain while others will already start feeling October heat. A high air pressure of 1008 hectopascals is currently over Maharashtra, which is expected to bring relief from rain in Konkan, North Maharashtra, Marathwada and South-West Maharashtra, while light to moderate rain is possible in West, Central and East Vidarbha.

A forecast has also been given for how the weather will behave over the next six days. On September 28, pressure will remain moderate at around 1006 hectopascals, which could bring light to moderate rain in most areas. On Tuesday, September 29, pressure of 1008 hectopascals in the northern part and 1010 hectopascals in the central part will give most places a break from rain. On Wednesday, September 30, pressure will rise to 1010 hectopascals. Between Thursday and Saturday, October 1 to 3, pressure will reach 1012 hectopascals, which will stop the rain, bring strong sunshine and mark the start of October heat.

According to the Regional Meteorological Centre, Colaba, a yellow alert for heavy rain has been issued for 7 districts of the state for Monday. Heavy rain with strong winds and thunder has been forecast for Pune ghat areas, Satara ghat areas, Kolhapur ghat areas, Kolhapur district, Beed and Dharashiv on Monday. Rain intensity is set to increase further on Tuesday too, with a yellow alert issued for 8 districts: Nashik ghat areas, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur, where heavy rain with strong winds and thunder is also expected.

In the equatorial region of the Pacific Ocean, sea temperature near Peru was recorded at 18 degrees Celsius, near Ecuador at 24 degrees, near Colombia at 26 degrees and near Cali at 28 degrees Celsius. In the western Indian Ocean, water temperature is 27 degrees Celsius and has not risen much, so the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) remains in a neutral state. Because of this, rain is expected to reduce and a long dry spell will follow after this week. The monsoon is currently over half of Rajasthan and will withdraw quickly from there soon. While retreating from Maharashtra, the monsoon will leave behind light to moderate rain.

The rain that has been falling continuously for the last two months has now started to reduce. The monsoon has already withdrawn from parts of Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, while a strong low-pressure area still persists over north-east Madhya Pradesh and north Chhattisgarh. In Maharashtra, rain will occur in isolated parts of East Vidarbha and Konkan. Light drizzle with thunder is possible in Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri, Raigad, Thane, Nashik ghat areas, Pune ghat areas, Satara ghat areas, Kolhapur ghat areas, Sangli, Satara, Pune, Solapur, Ahilyanagar, Beed, Dharashiv and Latur. The rest of the state will see cloudy skies and more sunshine.

While rain is reducing in the state, heavy rain in Chhattisgarh has affected Vidarbha. Due to continuous rain for two days in Chhattisgarh and Gadchiroli, flood-like conditions have become very serious in Bhamragad taluka. With the water level rising in the Indravati, Pamlagautam and Pallakota rivers, more than 50 villages in Bhamragad taluka have lost connectivity. People are stranded in various places and completely cut off from the outside world.

Meanwhile, with rain easing, humidity has been troubling Mumbaikars. A rise of 1 to 2 degrees in temperature led to intense mugginess in Mumbai on Saturday. The maximum temperature recorded at the Colaba centre was 33.2 degrees, while the minimum temperature also remained high. This is the highest temperature recorded in September in the last 5 years. Before this, Colaba had recorded a temperature of 33.5 degrees on September 7, 2020. Even though the monsoon has begun retreating from the state, light drizzle will continue over Konkan and the ghat areas. Elsewhere, with no rain, both sunshine and humidity will increase further.