The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a heavy to very heavy rainfall alert for several states across the country in its latest weather update.
“Heavy to very heavy rainfall activity, likely to continue over many parts of Northwest, central, east & northeast India during the next seven days,” said IMD in a statement.
According to IMD, very heavy rainfall at isolated places likely over Konkan and Goa, Ghat areas of Madhya Maharashtra, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, East Rajasthan, Vidarbha, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, and Jharkhand and Kerala during 27-29 June.
The IMD also noted that the southwest monsoon, which has already covered most of the country well before the usual date of 8 July, is likely to advance further across the remaining parts within the next 2–3 days.
Extremely heavy rainfall (more than 20 cm in 24 hours) is expected at isolated places over Saurashtra on 27 June, with heavy to very heavy rainfall likely over Konkan and Goa, Ghat areas of Madhya Maharashtra, and Gujarat during the next seven days. Light to moderate rainfall is expected across most places in the western region through this period.
Isolated heavy rainfall is forecast over Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, East Rajasthan, West Rajasthan, Jammu-Kashmir, and Uttar Pradesh during the next seven days. Additionally, very heavy rainfall is expected over Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, East Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh from 27 June to 2 July.
The IMD has forecast isolated heavy rainfall across Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim, Vidarbha, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands from 27 June to 3 July. Very heavy rainfall is likely in Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha, and Jharkhand between 27 June and 1 July. Light to moderate rain, with thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds, is also expected over these areas through the week.
The region will continue to receive isolated heavy rainfall over the next seven days, with very heavy rainfall likely over Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland from 27 June to 2 July, according to the IMD.
In the southern states, isolated heavy rainfall is forecast between 27 June and 3 July over Tamil Nadu, Coastal Karnataka, South Interior Karnataka, Telangana, and Kerala.
The IMD has issued a strong warning for fishermen to avoid venturing into the sea along and off the Gujarat coast, the entire Konkan coast, the north Konkan coast, and the Goa-Karnataka and Kerala coasts from 27 June to 2 July.
Similarly, fishermen are advised not to venture into international waters during this period, including the Somalia coast, adjacent sea areas, the Oman and Yemen coasts, the central and northern Arabian Sea, and most parts of the north Arabian Sea.
From 27 June to 2 July, fishermen should also avoid the west-central, east-central, and southwest Bay of Bengal and the coasts along north Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, north Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal.