Written by Parthivee Mukherji
Kolkata is set for a grey, rainy day, with the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting generally cloudy skies until tomorrow, August 14. Light to moderate rain and thunderstorms can be expected for parts of the city, offering some respite from the heat. Temperatuíres are expected to linger between a warm 33 degrees Celsius and a comparatively cooler 27 degrees Celsius, while sticky humidity will persist, ranging from sweltering 92 percent at its peak to 63 percent at its lowest.
Focusing on South Bengal districts, the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) has issued yellow alerts due to thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds (30-40 kmph) in most districts including Howrah, Hooghly, Purulia, and Bankura until August 15. Districts like South 24 Parganas, Paschim Medinipur, Jhargram, and others have a yellow alert for the 16th. Due to sea conditions being “moderate to rough” according to the RMC, “fishermen are advised not to venture into the deep sea along and off south Odisha coast, West Central Bay, and deep sea area of North-West Bay of Bengal from August 13 to 15.”
Meanwhile, the IMD predicts that widespread light to moderate rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall activity is very likely over the districts of North Bengal. Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, and Coochbehar have orange alerts in place for August 14. This is due to the possibility of heavy to very heavy rainfall (7-20 cm) occurring at some places. These districts also have yellow alerts in place for August 15 to 20. The other northern districts of Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, and Malda have been issued yellow alerts for August 14 due to very heavy rainfall (7-11 cm) and thunderstorm conditions accompanied by gusty winds.
The possible impact of these weather conditions is highlighted to be possible waterlogging, reductions of visibility during intense rain, and the possibility of landslides in hilly areas. People are advised to take caution and avoid movement in affected areas.
The writer is an intern with The Indian Express