Bengalureans out for the weekend were surprised by the sudden showers in the city on Saturday evening. Although there were scattered spells of rain on Friday, heavy rain lashed most parts of the city for around an hour on Saturday. The showers offered a much-needed respite as the mercury levels had risen in the city in the last week.
According to the data available on the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre’s (KSNDMC) Varuna Mitra, Rajmahal Guttahalli in the West zone of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) received about 20.50 mm rainfall (until 7 p.m.) and Nandini Layout in the same zone received 16.50 mm rainfall. Pulakeshinagar, Hagadur, and Bagalakunte were among the wards which also received more rainfall. In the central business district (CBD), many roads were slightly inundated due to the rainfall, making it difficult for pedestrians and motorists to navigate.
This year, during the monsoon, the rainfall in Bengaluru has been less than normal. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Bengaluru, data shows there is a departure of 68 mm in the seasonal rainfall (from June 1). However, there is going to be light to normal rain in the city for the next two days, officials said. On Saturday, Bengaluru city received 8.2 mm rainfall.
Rainfall occurs throughout the State
“The southwest monsoon has gotten prominent in the State, especially in South Interior Karnataka and North Interior Karnataka. There is also a low-pressure area over the coast which has caused the rains,” said A. Prasad, a scientist at IMD Bengaluru. He said that while rain will continue, the temperature in the city will also come down and hover between 28 to 30 degree Celsius.
With active monsoon, many parts of the State have received rainfall over the last two days. The IMD Bengaluru data showed that between Friday and Saturday, Kota in Udupi district received 7 cm rainfall. The IMD had also sounded yellow alerts in Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts on Saturday.
While rainfall is expected to continue in many parts of coastal Karnataka and a few places in the hinterlands, winds at a speed of 30 – 40 km per hour are likely at isolated places over the State in the next two days.
