According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), this year India recorded around 16 percent more rainfall than normal in August. According to IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, the whole country recorded 287.1 mm of rainfall in August, compared to the normal 248.1 mm.
Moreover, Northwest India recorded a rainfall of 253.9 mm, the second highest in August since 2001, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday.Overall, India has received 749 mm of precipitation against the normal 701 mm since the start of the monsoon season on June 1.
Above normal rainfall likely in September: IMD
After the above-average rainfall in August, the weather watchdog has made a similar forecast for the month of September as well. According to IMD, India is likely to experience above normal rainfall in September as well, with heavy to very heavy precipitation expected in northwest India and the surrounding areas.
Addressing a virtual press conference, Mohapatra said that the country is expected to receive above normal rainfall in September, at 109 per cent of the long-period average of 167.9 mm.
"Above normal rainfall is likely over most parts of India, except for some areas in extreme northwest India, many parts of the southern peninsula, northern Bihar, and northeastern Uttar Pradesh, as well as most of northeast India, where below normal rainfall is expected," the IMD chief said.
Further elaborating the monsoon scenario in September, Mohapatra said, the monsoon trough is expected to remain in its normal position, with the possibility of several low-pressure systems developing in the Bay of Bengal, which may travel towards west-northwest up to Rajasthan. The trough could also shift towards the foothills of the Himalayas, and there is a potential for a western disturbance to affect the region in September.
Delhi records highest August rainfall in 12 years
Besides the above-normal average downpour across the nation, with 378.5 mm of rainfall, Delhi separately recorded highest August rainfall in the last 12 years, according to the India Meteorological Department.
The Safdarjung Observatory registered 378.5 mm of rainfall till Thursday, surpassing the previous high of 321.4 mm recorded in August 2013, the IMD said.
The all-time record for August rainfall in Delhi stands at 583.3 mm in 1961, according to the IMD data.
