A day after the arrival of the monsoon, Kolkata barely got any rain despite the sky remaining overcast for the better part of the day.
The Met office recorded 1.8mm of rain in Alipore, which serves as the official record for Kolkata.
The lack of rain was attributed to what a Met official said a “weak entry” of the monsoon.
In the absence of any system over the Bay of Bengal, the monsoon currents are not strong enough, said the official.
But the conditions are likely to change, according to the forecast.
“A new system is expected to take shape over the northwest Bay around Thursday. A trough of low pressure that now stretches from Uttar Pradesh to the Northeast is also expected to come down. Because of these two factors, the spread and intensity of rainfall is likely to go up in south Bengal, including Kolkata,” said G.K. Das, director, IMD, Kolkata, who described the southwest monsoon’s entry into the city as “weak”.
North Bengal, which has been battered by heavy rain since the arrival of the monsoon on June 12, is expected to witness a decline in rainfall from Thursday, he said.
Because of the weak currents, the monsoon could not advance further in Bengal.
“The northern limit of the monsoon, which was passing through Canning (South 24-Parganas) and Sriniketan (Birbhum) on Monday, has not moved much. But the conditions are expected to become conducive to the further advancement of the monsoon in Bengal in the next two to three days,” said a Met official.
In Kolkata, the clouds were formed because of some moisture from the Bay. The clouds prevented the Celsius from shooting up.
The maximum temperature in Kolkata was just under 35 degrees on Tuesday, still a notch above normal.
“Some rain is expected in Kolkata on Wednesday. The volume is likely to go up from Thursday. The Celsius will go down one or two notches in the coming days,” said the official.
Nadia and Murshidabad received showers on Tuesday. Some parts of North and South 24-Parganas got a drizzle or two.
The change in the conditions, from scorching to cloudy, has dragged the Celsius down across south Bengal.
The maximum temperatures in West Burdwan, Bankura, Birbhum and Purulia were between 36 and 37 degrees on Tuesday. Last week, the Celsius had touched the 41-degree in all those districts.
Kolkata has so far recorded a significant rain deficit. The city usually gets around 465mm of rain from April to June. This year, till June 19, the city had received less than 180mm, according to the Met office.
A few sharp spells this month can reduce the deficit. July and August are usually the rainiest months in Kolkata. Last year, both months had logged deficits.