Mumbai rains: IMD predicts drop in rainfall intensity

People take cover at a bus stop following a brief spell on rain on Saturday. Pic/Ashish Raje

After a week of heavy downpour, Mumbai may finally witness some sunny intervals. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and other meteorologists have predicted that the intensity and frequency of rain will reduce over the next couple of days.

Between July 21 and July 27, Mumbai received 747 mm of cumulative rain. The city also surpassed the average monthly rainfall of 919.9 mm for July this year, with the Santa Cruz observatory recording 1,734 mm of rainfall between July 1 and July 29. During the same period, IMD's Colaba observatory recorded rainfall of 1,318 mm, as against its monthly average of 768 mm.

While the city has two more months of the monsoon season, it has already received 2,289 mm of rainfall, which is 91 per cent of the city's average annual quota of 2,502 mm. Between June and September last year, the city received 2,658.3 mm of rainfall.

Meanwhile, the IMD has issued a green alert (moderate rain) for Mumbai Thane and Palghar till August 1. Raigad is still on yellow alert (heavy rain). "The intensity and frequency of rainfall will reduce during the next three to four days across the state. Thereafter, from August 2 onwards, we will witness an increase in rainfall activities in the state," said an IMD official.

On Saturday, the IMD's Santa Cruz observatory recorded a rainfall of 36 mm, while Colaba recorded rain of only 8 mm. "Post August 1, we will not see any more increase in rain frequency. Sporadic showers will continue with bright spells. This is definitely a relief for commuters," said Rajesh Kapadia, who runs Vagaries of Weather, a popular private weather blog.

Amboli gets highest rainfall

At 4,699 mm, Amboli in the Sahyadri ranges of Maharashtra received the highest rainfall in the state between June 1 and July 29. This was followed by Tamhini ghat (4,412 mm), Davdi (4,118 mm) and Matheran (4,044 mm).