After July boost, Telangana braces for subdued rainfall spell
Despite rainfall in parts of Hyderabad on Wednesday, meteorologists have ruled out the possibility of widespread heavy rain across Telangana in the near future, forecasting
Despite rainfall in parts of Hyderabad on Wednesday, meteorologists have ruled out the possibility of widespread heavy rain across Telangana in the near future, forecasting only light to moderate showers in most areas and isolated heavy rainfall in a few pockets. Telangana Development Planning Society senior weather consultant Y.V. Rama Rao said there are no signs of a fresh low-pressure area or depression forming over the Bay of Bengal, which could bring substantial rainfall to Telangana. “The Indian Ocean Dipole remains in a neutral phase, while the Madden-Julian Oscillation is also not favouring the formation of weather systems that bring rain,” he said. Rama Rao explained that most monsoon activity is currently concentrated over northern India, resulting in subdued rainfall across Telangana over the past few days.
“We received significant rainfall during the last week of July due to a depression that crossed the Odisha coast and moved towards central India due to western disturbances. It brought heavy rain to Maharashtra, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh and the northern districts of Telangana,” he said. The July spell helped reduce the seasonal rainfall deficit. Telangana received 11.5 cm of rainfall in June against the normal 13 cm, a deficit of 12%. In July, the State recorded 22.4 cm against the normal 22.7 cm, narrowing the deficit to just 1%. From June 1 to date, Telangana has received 41 cm of rainfall against the normal 44.5 cm, leaving the State with an overall deficit of about 8%.
In the GHMC area, rainfall stands at 30.2 cm against the normal 34.6 cm, translating into a deficit of 13%. Absence of widespread cloud cover has also pushed temperatures above normal levels. While maximum temperatures during this period are generally expected to range between 31C and 34C across Telangana and 29C to 31C in Hyderabad, they are currently hovering between 34C and 37C in the State and 32C to 34C in the city. Minimum temperatures, too, have remained a few degrees above normal. Meanwhile, Hyderabad-based Indian Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) has forecast a high probability of El Niño conditions prevailing from August 2026 to March 2027. According to its latest outlook, the probability of El Niño developing during this period is as high as 98%, while the chances of La Niña remain below 2%.
El Niño, characterised by warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central equatorial Pacific Ocean, is generally associated with weaker Indian monsoon rainfall. INCOIS noted that subsurface warm anomalies exceeding 3C have spread from the western Pacific to the central and eastern equatorial Pacific, signalling the development of El Niño conditions. El Niño can intensify and prolong marine heatwaves in the northern Indian Ocean, affecting marine ecosystems, coral reefs and fisheries, warned scientists.
The BriefWire