August set to end in Delhi with lowest rainfall in 14 years

Data from India Meteorological Department (IMD) shows Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi’s primary weather station has recorded a meager 40 mm rainfall in August as compared to a normal of 222.9 mm.

Normally, August is considered to be the wettest month of the year with an average of 247 mm of precipitation every year. Delhi recorded 214.5 mm of rainfall in 2021, 237 mm in 2020, and 119.6 mm in 2019, according to data from the IMD website.

On the whole, the Safdarjung Observatory has recorded a decline of 31 percent with the observatory logging 350.8 mm of rainfall against a normal of 506.7 mm since June. Mahesh Palawat, vice president (climate change and meteorology), Skymet Weather, as reported by news agency PTI, said 

“Three low-pressure areas developed over the northwest Bay of Bengal in August which traveled across Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and south Pakistan, giving good rains there.”

“The LPAs kept the monsoon trough south of its normal position for a long time. Delhi and other parts of northwest India received rain only when the trough passed over the region while moving to the foothills of the Himalayas,” Palawat further added.

Palawat says the monsoon will remain subdued over northwest India over the next week. IMD has also predicted subdued rainfall over northwest and central India during the next five days. 

Things are unlikely to get better with the weather department predicting subdued rains predicted for September. 

Last year, Delhi recorded the third highest rainfall since 1901 yielding a total of 1,169.4 mm of rainfall. 

With inputs from PTI

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