The Met office on Wednesday predicted light to moderate rain over south Bengal districts and Kolkata for the next three days, bringing relief as several districts there have been reeling under sweltering weather for the last few days.
An official of the Regional Meteorological Centre in Kolkata’s Alipore said: “The monsoon axis is over Bengal. Due to this, there will be rain again. Light to moderate rain will occur in south Bengal. There will be rain with thunderstorms from Wednesday evening. There is a high possibility of rain in eight districts from today till Friday.”
According to the Met Department, the monsoon axis extends over Jodhpur, Deomali, Chapra, Purulia, and Digha to the northeast Bay of Bengal. There is a cyclonic circulation over south Odisha and north coastal Andhra Pradesh in the upper atmosphere, extending to a height of 4.5 km above sea level and tilted towards the south.
On the other hand, there is another cyclonic circulation over east Bihar and adjoining areas at a height of 3.1 km. As a result of all this, light to moderate rain will continue in the upper five districts of north Bengal. There is also a possibility of heavy rain at a few places.
Rain accompanied by thundershowers is likely in East Burdwan, West Burdwan, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Purulia, Bankura, North 24 Parganas, and South 24 Parganas districts. The rain will increase from Thursday. There is a possibility of rain in all districts of south Bengal, including Kolkata, on Friday.
At the same time, heat and discomfort will increase significantly in south Bengal from Thursday onwards. Rain will decrease over the weekend, and there will again be a rise in the discomfort level due to high humidity. On Wednesday, the minimum temperature in Kolkata was 28.4 degrees. On Tuesday, the maximum temperature was 34.4 degrees.
Meanwhile, heavy rain has been forecast in Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri districts in north Bengal from Thursday. Scattered heavy rain is likely in all north Bengal districts till Monday. Thunderstorms with lightning will continue in some places.
