A deep depression over the northwest Bay of Bengal is set to cross the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh between Sagar Island and Khepupara (Bangladesh) by Thursday afternoon, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Under its influence, heavy to extremely heavy rainfall is expected across the Northeastern states, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Sikkim until May 31.
The IMD has also warned of isolated exceptionally heavy rainfall exceeding 30 cm over parts of Meghalaya on May 29 and 30, as the system moves inland.
In southern India, heavy to extremely heavy rainfall is likely to continue over Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and the ghat areas of Tamil Nadu on May 29 and 30, with a gradual reduction expected thereafter.
Meanwhile, rainfall activity accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds is also expected over northwest India over the next four to five days, driven by the influence of multiple western disturbances currently affecting the region.
Monsoon Advances Further
The southwest monsoon made significant progress on Thursday, advancing into more parts of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, the North Bay of Bengal, the remaining Northeastern states, and parts of Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, the IMD confirmed.
Conditions remain favourable for the monsoon to further advance into additional parts of West Bengal and Bihar over the next 1–2 days.
Rainfall and Weather Observed in Last 24 Hours
During the past 24 hours, heavy to very heavy rainfall was reported at isolated places over Konkan & Goa, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry & Karaikal, Kerala & Mahe, and Coastal and South Interior Karnataka.
Heavy rainfall was also recorded over parts of Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim, Odisha, Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada, Telangana, and eastern parts of Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha.
Thunderstorms accompanied by squally to gusty winds (ranging between 40–80 kmph) were observed in parts of Tamil Nadu, Assam, Meghalaya, East Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Uttarakhand, Gangetic West Bengal, Haryana, West Uttar Pradesh, Mizoram, Odisha, Jharkhand, Punjab, and other adjoining regions.
In addition, hailstorms were reported from isolated parts of Himachal Pradesh, while dust storms occurred in parts of West Rajasthan.
The IMD has advised citizens, especially in vulnerable regions, to stay alert and follow local advisories as intense rainfall and gusty winds may lead to localised flooding, landslides, and travel disruptions.