Kolkata: On Saturday, the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Alipore announced a red alert for substantial rainfall in north Bengal, effective until Monday. The forecast also predicts a rise in precipitation across south Bengal, particularly in Kolkata, beginning Tuesday.
The meteorological office indicated that sporadic rainfall would persist in the districts of south Bengal until Tuesday, after which moderate to heavy rain, along with thunderstorms, is anticipated to become more intense and continue through Friday.
Expectations for heavy rain are particularly noted for the North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, and Nadia districts on Tuesday. Other regions in south Bengal are also likely to experience rain and thunderstorms, with wind speeds reaching 30-40 km/h.
In north Bengal, the districts of Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar are forecasted to receive extremely heavy rainfall on Saturday and Sunday. The meteorological office has issued warnings of heavy to very heavy rain in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Cooch Behar, and neighboring districts near the Himalayan foothills until Monday. Although rainfall may diminish slightly from Tuesday, a heavy rain alert will still be in effect for Jalpaiguri and Kalimpong until Wednesday.
Meteorologists have linked these weather patterns to a well-defined low-pressure system over the northwest Bay of Bengal adjacent to the Odisha-West Bengal coastline, alongside a cyclonic circulation extending up to 5.8 kilometers above sea level. The monsoon trough currently extends from Punjab through Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal into the north Bay of Bengal, facilitating significant moisture inflow and boosting rainfall across the area.
The meteorological office has also cautioned fishermen against heading out to sea off the West Bengal coast until Saturday due to strong winds of 35-45 km/h, with gusts reaching up to 55 km/h influenced by the prevailing weather system.
On another note, Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 27.7 degrees Celsius on Saturday, which is 0.8 degrees above the normal range, while the maximum temperature the previous day was 31 degrees Celsius, falling 1.8 degrees below normal.
