Orange alert in 4 Vidarbha districts, Nagpur AQI at 59, monsoon retreat from October 5

Maharashtra's monsoon withdrawal is set to gather pace, but before that the state saw another spell of rain on Friday, September 25. According to the India Meteorological Department, heavy rain was likely in parts of Vidarbha and Marathwada, while Mumbai, Thane and Palghar were expected to see only light rain.

An orange alert was issued for Friday in Bhandara, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Gondia districts, where heavy rain could be accompanied by thunder and strong winds. This has been attributed to a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal affecting Maharashtra's weather.

In Marathwada, Parbhani, Beed, Latur and Dharashiv were also expected to see rain with strong winds, while parts of central Maharashtra were forecast light to moderate rain. Wind speeds in Jalgaon could reach 40 to 50 kilometres per hour, and a strong wind warning was also issued for Solapur.

In the Konkan region, rain intensity on Friday was expected to be relatively lower. Mumbai, Thane and Palghar could see light rain, while Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg were also forecast rain. Parts of Mumbai could see sudden thunder and squally weather with strong winds.

The southwest monsoon is expected to begin withdrawing from Maharashtra around October 5, with most of the state likely to see the monsoon depart by October 10. Rainfall in Maharashtra this season has been around 17 percent below the normal average. Pune saw an 82 percent drop in weekly rainfall between September 10 and 16, though for the season overall the district's total monsoon rainfall has been around 20 percent above average.

In Nagpur city, the temperature on Friday was recorded at around 23 degrees Celsius. The day's maximum temperature was expected at 26 degrees and the minimum at around 24 degrees. Sunrise was at 5:44 am and sunset at 5:50 pm. Humidity was around 97 percent and atmospheric pressure was recorded at around 1004. Nagpur's maximum temperature is expected to rise over the coming days to around 26, 26, 29, 32, 33 and 33 degrees Celsius on successive days.

Nagpur's Air Quality Index was recorded at 59 on Friday, in the moderate category. PM2.5 levels stood at 14 and PM10 at 27. People were advised to stay alert to local weather conditions when stepping out amid the rain and humidity.