Heavy to extremely heavy rainfall persists in parts of north and central India, leading to significant flood threats in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, while Delhi and Mumbai experience a temporary respite.
This Thursday, September 3, a wet weather pattern continued to affect large areas of the country, prompting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue warnings for heavy to very heavy rain across Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and several other states in the coming days. In contrast, Delhi and Mumbai enjoyed a relatively pleasant morning, though the weather remained unsettled in other regions. Delhi is expected to have a mostly cloudy day with light rain in various areas and sporadic moderate showers, with temperatures projected to range between 32 and 34 degrees Celsius. However, the respite in Delhi may be short-lived as the IMD forecasts widespread rainfall over the city, Haryana, and Chandigarh on September 3 and 4, along with isolated heavy showers possible until September 5.
The situation is much more severe in Uttar Pradesh, where flooding remains a critical concern. To date, 16,784 individuals have been evacuated to safety, including 3,042 rescued on Wednesday alone, with 23 out of 35 flood-affected districts still grappling with the crisis. There have been three reported fatalities due to rain-related incidents. The IMD predicts that western Uttar Pradesh will continue to experience widespread rainfall until September 5, while eastern regions should prepare for another round of rain on the 6th and 7th, with isolated very heavy rain anticipated and heavy rain possible in western areas on September 2-3. Key locations facing severe impacts include Prayagraj, Varanasi, Ghazipur, Ballia, Lakhimpur Kheri, Pilibhit, Chitrakoot, and Sonbhadra. In Pilibhit, rising waters from the Sharda, Deoha, and Khakra rivers have inundated several villages, and the Khakra bridge being submerged has isolated around 18 villages.
Madhya Pradesh is also under significant threat, with widespread rain expected across both its eastern and western regions until September 8, and isolated extremely heavy rain possible in eastern areas on September 2-3. Recent overnight rain has already left parts of Sidhi flooded, and the IMD has issued a low to moderate flash-flood risk for Sidhi, Rewa, Singrauli, Satna, and Jabalpur, as well as Mirzapur, Prayagraj, Sonbhadra, and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh. Furthermore, eastern regions are not spared, with heavy to very heavy showers anticipated in Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and Meghalaya. The coastal areas of Konkan, Goa, and parts of Maharashtra remain under close monitoring for the rest of the week.
A red alert is currently in effect for eastern Madhya Pradesh and certain parts of Uttarakhand, while an orange alert is issued for western Uttar Pradesh, Vidarbha, Uttarakhand, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Sikkim. Additionally, a yellow alert has been declared for western Madhya Pradesh, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Odisha, Karnataka, Telangana, and Jammu and Kashmir. Authorities have warned that the rainfall could lead to waterlogging and flooding in multiple areas, as well as disrupt road, rail, and air travel.
