West Bengal will receive heavy rainfall from Tuesday as Cyclone Arnab approaches the Andhra Pradesh coast. The India Meteorological Department issued a yellow alert for Kolkata on Wednesday and Thursday. Many districts expect thunderstorms and gusty winds. Temperatures are likely to fall by 2-3℃ as the rainy weather finally started.
A yellow alert has been issued for light to moderate rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning, in Kolkata on Wednesday and Thursday.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy rain, thunderstorms, and lightning in West Bengal from Tuesday, even though Cyclone Arnab, which is expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast on Wednesday, is unlikely to directly affect the state.
According to the IMD's Regional Meteorological Centre, Kolkata is expected to experience partly cloudy skies but no rain till Tuesday. Maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to range between 31.5℃ and 23.6℃. Maximum and minimum relative humidity is expected to remain between 83 per cent and 50 per cent, respectively.
Scattered rain may begin in Kolkata on Tuesday. A yellow alert has been issued for light to moderate rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning, for Wednesday and Thursday. Gusty winds may also blow at speeds of 30-40 kmph. There is also a possibility of scattered rain in one or two places in Kolkata on Friday.
Heavy rain in South Bengal on Wednesday and Thursday
After a spell of dry weather until the early hours of Tuesday, the districts along or adjacent to the coast -- South 24 Parganas, East Midnapore, West Midnapore, and Jhargram -- are expected to witness thunderstorms with gusty winds of 30-40 kmph and lightning on Tuesday. This will be followed by heavy rain of 7-11 cm in a few places from Wednesday until the early hours of Friday.
Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, and North 24 Parganas are forecast to receive light to moderate rains and thundershowers from Tuesday onwards, along with thunderstorms, gusty winds of 30-40 kmph, and lightning on Wednesday and Thursday.
The western and central districts of Purulia, Bankura, East Bardhaman, West Bardhaman, Birbhum, Murshidabad, and Nadia are expected to receive light rain and thundershowers from Wednesday, with warnings issued for thunderstorms with gusty winds of 30-40 kmph and lightning between Wednesday and the early hours of Saturday.
Purulia and Bankura will have yellow alerts on Wednesday and Thursday, while the rest of the districts in the region will have the alerts in place till Friday. Maximum temperatures during this time are expected to fall by 2-3℃, while minimum temperatures are expected to remain largely unchanged.
Heavy rain in North Bengal from Thursday
The North Bengal districts of Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, Cooch Behar, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur, and Malda are expected to receive light to moderate rain and thundershowers between the early hours of Wednesday and Thursday.
The IMD has warned of heavy rainfall of 7-11 cm, accompanied by thunderstorms, gusty winds of 30-40 kmph, and lightning in a few areas between Thursday and the early hours of Sunday, November 1.
There will be a yellow alert in place in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, and Cooch Behar between Thursday and the early hours of Sunday.
North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur, and Malda will also have a yellow alert on Thursday and Friday, extending to the early hours of Saturday.
By Sunday, heavy rain is expected to subside in North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur, and Malda first, followed by the other districts in North Bengal.
Maximum temperatures during this period are expected to fall by 2-3℃, with no significant change in minimum temperatures forecast. There will be no change in temperature for the next three days. The mercury in North and South Bengal may drop by two to three degrees after that.
In the early hours of Monday, the deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into Cyclone Arnab over East-central and adjoining West-central Bay of Bengal. It is very likely to move west-northwestwards and intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm over West-central Bay of Bengal by Monday midnight and into a very severe cyclonic storm over the same region on Tuesday. The entire state will be placed under a yellow alert on Wednesday.
Sharanyo Basu is an intern with The Indian Express, Kolkata.