Overall rainfall 2% above normal

MONSOON WATCH

The excessively heavy downpour in Mumbai on July 26-27 that wrecked havoc on the metropolis was indeed not the highest one-day rainfall ever recorded in any part of the country.

That distinction, whether good or bad, belongs to Amini division in Lakshdweep which received as much as 116.8 cms of rainfall on May 5, 2004. Mumbai (Santacruz) had recorded 94.4 cms of rainfall in 24 hours on July 27, 2005. Even Cherrapunji has recorded more rainfall than Mumbai's on at least three occasions in 1876, 1910 and 1974.

Dharampur (district Valsad) in Gujarat also figures in this list with a recorded rainfall of 98.5 cms on July 2, 1941. And surprisingly enough, the popular hill station of Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh had got about 99.6 cms of rainfall on June 18, 1899. 
 

Highest (24hrs) rainfall ever recorded in the country
Name of station (State/UT)	Rainfall (CM)	Date
Amini Divi (Lakshadweep)	116.8	May 6, 2004
Cherrapunji (Meghalaya)	103.6	June 14, 1876
Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh)	99.6	June 18, 1899
Cherrapunji (Meghalaya)	99.8	July 12, 1910
Mousimram (Meghalaya)	98.9	July 10, 1952
Dharampur Valsad Distt (Gujarat)	98.7	July 2, 1941
Cherrapunji (Meghalaya)	98.5	Sept 13, 1974
Santacruz Mumbai (Maharashtra)	94.4	July 7, 2005
Source: IMD

However, what may be of more relevance today is how will the monsoon behave in the next few days, especially in the rain-ravaged Maharashtra and Gujarat.

Going by the forecast made by the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), the on-going rainfall in Gujarat and east Rajasthan is likely to decrease after August 5.

But Goa, Konkan and the remaining parts of Maharashtra are likely to receive widespread rains in the next two to three days. In fact, Konkan and Goa may even receive isolated heavy falls till August 7 or 8.

For the north-west India, including New Delhi, which is craving for rains due to the hot and humid weather of past several days, the NCMRWF has a good news to offer.

It says that a western disturbance which is approaching the north-west India around August 5 is likely to interact with the monsoon low pressure system, leading to increased rainfall in Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, parts of Haryana (including Delhi), western parts of Bihar and north Madhya Pradesh from August 6.

The eastern India and the peninsular region, too, are expected to receive fairly widespread rainfall in the next two to three days.

The net result of the good monsoon rainfall since its revival in mid-July is that the lag in crop sowing has largely been made up in most areas, barring those inundated by floods or heavy downpour.

Most of the reservoirs are brimming over, portending well for irrigation and hydropower supplies in the months to come.

However, extensive damage to standing crops has been reported in the flooded areas which may force the farmers to re-sow their fields after the water drains out.

This heavy rainfall spell has transformed the overall rainfall scenario from highly deficient to above normal. The cumulative rainfall for the monsoon season as a whole now stands over two per cent above normal.

While till mid-July, only about 76 per cent of the country's total geographical area had received normal or excess rainfall, this has risen to 87 per cent by July-end. Only about 13 per cent of the area is now in the deficient rainfall category, against 24 per cent till mid-July.

The reports received from the rain-hit areas of Maharashtra and Gujarat indicate extensive crop damage due to floods. Incidence of pest attack has also been reported from some areas.

In Maharashtra, over 80 per cent of the Kharif planting was already done by July 22. But the paddy crop is said to have been damaged in the districts of Raigad, Ratnagiri, Thane, Sindhudurga, Kolhapur and western talukas of Pune and Satara due to subsequent heavy rainfall.

The crops such as soyabean, groundnut and jowar are also reportedly damaged in the districts of Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara, Nanded and Parbhani. Late sowing or re-sowing may be done after the rains stop, agricultural experts feel.

Large tracts of pre-seasonal sugarcane crop in Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada and Vidarbha has been inundated on the banks of Panchaganga, Krishna and Bhima rivers.

The farm experts are advising the farmers to drain out the water from the fields and take plant protection measures against pests. For the dreaded woolly aphids, they suggest the biological method of its control by releasing 2500 larvae of Crysoperla carnea or 1000 eggs or pupa of Konobathra aphdivhora in every hectare.

In other states, where excessive rains have damaged the paddy crop, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is advising the farmers to either re-sow the crop after the recession of floods or go in for gap filling.

They also suggest application of another dose of fertilisers but only when the rains abate.

The total live storage in the country's 76 important reservoirs was 56.37 billion cubic metres on July 29. This represents 42 per cent of the full storage capacity and is the highest level achieved on this date in the past several years. Last year, it was only half of it, 21 per cent of the full storage capacity.