Mumbai records only 5% of average August rain so far

“As of now, there is no forecast for heavy rains in Mumbai along with Thane and Palghar for next five days. For the time being, light to moderate spells of rains will continue through sporadic spells, while there may be an increased rain in central and northern parts of Maharashtra,” Sushma Nair, scientist from IMD Mumbai told Express on Friday. Nair said that at present, the Konkan belt along with remaining parts of the state is experiencing a monsoon break.

“At present, the rain trough has located itself at the foothills of Himalayas and whenever this kind of phenomenon occurs, there is a break in rainfall. This kind of breaks usually occur between July and August and stays up to six days, but this time it has extended a bit longer than 10 days. It is not just Maharashtra, the entire Central India, which is core zone for monsoon, is experiencing deficient rains now,” Nair said.

Meanwhile, the water stock in all the seven lakes stood at 83% on Friday. Owing to the dry spell, the average water level in all the seven lakes has showed only a 1% rise since August 13.

At present, the Vihar lake is 100% full, while Tulsi is 99% full, followed by 98% in Tansa, 96% in middle Vaitarna and 95% in Modak Sagar. The water stock in Bhatsa and Upper Vaitarna stand at 77% and 70% respectively.

In the past 24 hours, Tulsi recorded 11 mm of rains, while Tansa and Bhatsa recorded 5 mm of rains each, and Modak Sagar and Middle Vaitarna recorded 4 mm of rains each, while Vehar and Upper Vaitarna recorded 3 mm of rains.