With widespread monsoon activity, rains become surplus in Punjab, Haryana

Light to moderate rain occurred at many places in northwest India during the past 24 hours, with heavy rain also being experienced at isolated places, keeping day temperatures below normal.

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During this period, SBS Nagar was the wettest district in Punjab with 42.1 mm of rain, followed by Ropar (41.9 mm), SAS Nagar (36.4 mm) and Ferozepur (36.3 mm), according to data compiled by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

However, some districts, including Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran in northwest Punjab, and the central part of the Malwa region including Faridkot, Muktsar, Bathinda and Mansa remained dry.

Rainfall in the state has been surplus by 26 percent in the month of June so far. Overall, Punjab has received 62.8 mm of rain from June 1 till the morning of June 26 compared to the long-period average of 49.7 mm for this period, IMD data shows.

While most parts of Haryana also received rain, the southwestern region remained dry. Ambala recorded the highest rainfall at 39.9 mm, followed by Yamunanagar (37.9 mm) and Kurukshetra (20.6 mm). The state has received 62.2 mm of rain from June 1 till June 29, against the normal 50.5 mm, marking a surplus of 23 per cent.

The southwest monsoon has now covered the entire country as on June 29, nearly 10 days ahead of its normal schedule of July 8. Cumulatively, rainfall in June has been normal to above normal in most parts of the country, including northwest India.

The IMD has predicted that heavy to very heavy rainfall is likely to continue over many parts of northwest India during the next seven days. A red alert has been issued for some hilly regions, while an orange alert is in place for other areas.

Isolated heavy rainfall is likely over Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand till July 5, and over Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh till July 3. Very heavy rainfall is expected over Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana on June 29 and 30.

Light to moderate rainfall accompanied with thunderstorm, lightning and gusty winds with speed reaching 30-40 kmph is also expected at most places of northwest India over the coming week.