The Hindu Business Line : Rains confined to East, South

METEOROLOGICAL authorities maintained a watch for monsoon withdrawal in Northwest India even as the prevailing western disturbance and the embedded trough brought scattered to moderate rainfall to the eastern parts of the country on Tuesday.

A weather update by the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF) said rainfall of varying intensity was reported from Sikkim, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, the northeastern States, western Himalayas and the southern peninsula, including parts of Tamil Nadu. Mainly dry weather prevailed over northwest and central India.

The NCMRWF also highlighted weather features such as an upper air cyclonic circulation each over Saurashtra-Kutch and North Bay of Bengal. A north-south trough running from Sikkim to the centre of the Bay circulation was also on view.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Centre (JTWC) put the weakening Tropical Storm Damrey under watch for any signs of regeneration over Vietnam. The other western Pacific system, Typhoon Longwang, was spinning away west-northwest from the path Damrey tracked.

Monsoon statistics compiled by NCMRWF reveal that all-India weekly rainfall has improved considerably to 61 per cent above normal during the week ending September 21.

The cumulative rainfall percentage departure for the season improved to two per cent below normal from five per cent till the previous weekend.

Zone-wise analysis of recorded rainfall showed that the northwest (-12 per cent) and the northeast (-22 per cent) had run up deficits, while both central India (+10 per cent) and the southern peninsula (+16 per cent) returned surpluses.

Out of the 36 Met subdivisions in the country, five have consistently fallen under the rain-deficient category right through the season.

They are (with percentage deficit figures in brackets) Jharkhand (-33); Bihar (-21); West Rajasthan (-22); Assam and Meghalaya (-25) and Nagaland-Manipur-Mizoram-Tripura (-28).

Rainfall brought about by Tropical Cyclone Pyaar over the past week saw at least four subdivisions convert themselves from being rain-deficit to rain-normal. These are East and West Uttar Pradesh, East Rajasthan and West Madhya Pradesh. But seven other normal/excess category subdivisions recorded less than normal rainfall during the week.

In its farm advisory, the NCMRWF said farmers in the Northeast are well advised to ensure proper drainage in the fields of pulses, soyabean, groundnut and vegetables depending on the severity of rainfall.

The early sown maize in the north, northwest, west, central and the northeast is in the maturity stage. Farmers have been advised to pick cobs from standing plants when the husk cover turns yellowish brown in colour.

In Tamil Nadu, a farmer can still take up sowing of winter irrigated cotton and Samba rice, the advisory said.

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