Monsoon is expected to arrive in north Bengal in a few days but before that the region is likely to receive heavy rainfall over the next two days (May 30-31) though Kolkata will have to wait a while longer for a wet spell.
From June 1 to 3, all north Bengal districts are under yellow warning as heavy rain (7-11cm) is forecast with strong moisture incursion likely from a trough that runs from a cyclonic circulation over northwest Uttar Pradesh to west Bangladesh across southeast Uttar Pradesh, south Bihar and sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim at 0.9km above mean sea level. Cooch Behar, Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri districts have been marked as orange warning zones. Yellow warning has been issued for Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts as heavy rain between 7-11cm is predicted.
Southwest monsoon has set in over Kerala and advanced into most parts of northeast India, including Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and most parts of Tripura, Meghalaya and Assam, India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced on Thursday.
Conditions are favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon into some parts of sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim during the next two to three days.
Kolkata already recorded 435.3mm rain and received around 200mm because of cyclone Remal File photograph
It usually takes 10-12 days for the onset of monsoon in south Bengal after it hits Kerala, according to IMD. Owing to Cyclone Remal, the city has already received 26 per cent of its annual average rainfall. Before Remal, Kolkata already recorded 435.3mm rain and received around 200mm during the cyclonic weather. With the onset in north Bengal, south Bengal can expect monsoon to arrive around June 10. On Thursday, it was largely cloudy with rain on the cards towards evening.
Summer tourists are still vacationing in the hill stations of north Bengal. The weather department has also issued a list of possible impacts of the rain and precautions to take.
The weather office has warned of landslides in hilly areas, rise in water-level in rivers like Teesta, Jaldhaka, Sankosh and Torsa, reduced visibility during intense spell of rain, damage to horticulture and standing crops and vegetables on the field and temporary waterlogging in low-lying areas and underpasses especially in urban areas.
People have been advised to avoid movement in landslide-prone and waterlogging-prone areas and staying in vulnerable kutcha houses. Movement of traffic must be regulated judiciously in keeping with real-time weather alerts on the Mausam/Damini app.