Kolkata, Aug 7 (IANS) The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for Kolkata and several districts in South Bengal, forecasting light to moderate rain accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds (30-40 km/h) through the weekend.
According to the Regional Meteorological Centre in Kolkata’s Alipore, heavy rainfall is likely to occur in South Bengal districts like Hooghly, East Burdwan, Bankura, South 24 Parganas, and Nadia.
At the same time, light to moderate rain with thundershowers is likely at one or two places in Birbhum, Murshidabad, East Burdwan, Bankura, West Midnapore, and South 24 Parganas districts, as per the weather department.
Light to moderate rain is also likely at most places in some of these districts on Friday. There is also a possibility of heavy rain in Purulia, accompanied by gusty winds. The intensity of rain over South Bengal will reduce from Saturday.
The flood-like situations in several places in West Midnapore, Howrah, and Hooghly districts will further deteriorate due to heavy rain.
On Wednesday, the maximum temperature in Kolkata was 29.2 degrees Celsius, which is 2 degrees below normal. The minimum temperature was 23.5 degrees Celsius, which is three degrees below normal. The relative humidity in the air was a maximum of 98 per cent and a minimum of 89 per cent.
Meanwhile, heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely at a few places in the North Bengal districts of Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, and Alipurduar. Heavy rainfall is likely at one or two places in Cooch Behar and Malda.
“Heavy rains will continue in Bengal in the next few days. The monsoon axis from Bihar to Bangladesh, which has passed over Gangetic West Bengal, has brought a lot of moisture into the state. Due to the present system, rain will continue across the state,” said a Met department official.
The quantum of rainfall will increase in North Bengal from Thursday.
Due to incessant rain, the water level of the Teesta, Torsa, and Jaldhaka rivers will rise further. There is also a possibility of flooding of low-lying areas surrounding the rivers. There is a risk of landslides in the hills. For the last few days, several landslides have occurred on NH-10, which has cut off road connectivity between Sikkim and north Bengal’s Siliguri.
–IANS
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