Rains to lash northwestern, central, eastern India over next 3-4 days: IMD

Heavy monsoon rains are set to lash parts of India in the coming days, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing severe weather warnings for several states. Northwestern, central, and eastern regions are bracing for heavy to extremely heavy rainfall over the next three to four days.

The IMD has flagged isolated extremely heavy showers over parts of eastern Rajasthan, central India, and the eastern states. Northwest and central regions can expect heavy downpours during 2-4 August, while eastern India is likely to be drenched on 2 August.

A monsoon trough is currently active and is expected to persist over the next few days, prolonging the wet spell across the affected areas.

The weather agency has sounded a flood alert for regions in the path of the heavy rainfall, warning of potential waterlogging in urban centres and crop damage in agricultural heartlands. This comes after recent severe flooding in cities like New Delhi, Surat, and Pune, as well as cloudbursts in Himachal Pradesh.

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The IMD has issued red alerts for Sikkim, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, eastern Madhya Pradesh, and central Maharashtra for 2 August, indicating a high risk of severe weather. Orange alerts, signifying the potential for adverse weather conditions, have been issued for several other states, including parts of northwestern India, West Bengal, and coastal regions.

For 3 August, Madhya Pradesh and central Maharashtra remain on red alert, while other states, including Uttarakhand, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh, are on orange alert.

The IMD predicted slightly muted rainfall activity in August, compared with the above-normal rainfall across the country in July, in a press conference earlier this week.

The weather bureau also said the cumulative rainfall in August and September, the second half of the nation's monsoon which is critical for irrigation of standing crops, will be above-normal.

According to a government statement, farmers had sown Kharif crops across 90.46 million hectares as of Friday, up 2.9% from a year ago.

The June to September monsoon season brings in 75% of India’s annual rainfall, watering crops, replenishing reservoirs, and boosting farm income and consumer demand. Over half of India's arable land is rain-fed and the agriculture second remains among the biggest employment generators.

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Agriculture, contributing 15% to India’s gross domestic product, saw its growth rate plunge to 1.4% in FY24 from 4.7% in FY23, largely due to uneven rains last year, with the season's rainfall 6% below normal.

This year, above-normal rains will likely support 5% farm output growth.