The IMD projects total rainfall in the June-September monsoon season as being 99 per cent of the long-period average.
The weather department has said that the skies are expected to be partly cloudy for the next few days in Delhi.
The state, which had been reeling under intense cold wave since a week, got some respite on Thursday as the minimum temperature rose to 4.4 degrees Celsius in capital city Patna while Gaya district recorded 3.4 degree Celsius.
The Northern Railways said it has cancelled around 17 trains and diverted around 12 others, while traffic has been suspended at four locations due to waterlogging.
After churning across the Arabian Sea for more than 10 days, Biparjoy made landfall near Jakhau Port in Gujarat on Thursday.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD), for the first time, officially hinted at a drought-like situation, saying the southwest monsoon over India in 2012 is likely to be deficient at below 90 per cent of the Long Period Average (LPA).
State capital Lucknow shuddered at 0.7 degrees Celsius, while Bahraich recorded a low of 0.2 degrees Celsius.
All sub-regions have been receiving good rainfall except the North-east and east region of the country, where the deficiency has reached 23 per cent.
The wholesale price index based inflation in June declined to 7.25 per cent from 7.55 per cent in the previous month.
As the southwest monsoon continues to narrow its overall deficit, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday exuded confidence that the dreaded El Nino weather pattern was unlikely to affect monsoon rains this year.
Monsoon will hit the Kerala coast on June 1, setting the stage for the four-month annual rainfall season crucial for India's agriculture-based economy. "The date of onset of the southwest monsoon over Kerala is likely to be on June 1 with a model error of four days," the India Meteorological Department announced on Tuesday.
El Nino, an anomalous rise in sea surface temperature off the Peru coast, has been observed to often cause the Indian monsoon to flounder, resulting in poor rainfall. Nearly 60 per cent of agricultural land is wholly rain-dependent.
The maximum sustained wind speed is 55 knots gusting to 65 knots around system centre. Sea condition is rough to very rough, it stated.
Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices cairman Ashok Gulati tells Business Standard that IMD's prediction should be taken with a pinch of salt, as data shows there is usually a deviation of eight-10 per cent from the standard margin of error in many met predictions.
The weather system remained practically stationary during the last six hours and weakened to a depression, and is likely to turn into a well-marked low pressure area during the next 12 hours, it said in a bulletin.
A powerful earthquake of 7.4 magnitude struck southwestern Pakistan in the small hours of the day, tremors of which were felt in parts of northwestern India, including the national capital.
Of these four flights (except Qatar Airways) returned to Kozhikode airport as the weather condition in Kozhikode gained normalcy.
With a gradual rise in temperature and the start of heatwave, FMCG and dairy firms selling cola-based fizz drinks, juices, mineral water, ice creams and milk-based beverages expect a spike in sales and have ramped up their production and stocks to meet the anticipated consumer demand. The makers are launching new products keeping in mind the evolving consumer preferences and also investing substantially on promotions and expansion of the channels this season, company executives of beverage and ice cream makers said. Beverages major PepsiCo said summer months are naturally the most favourable season for its category and it is "optimistic" that its portfolio of brands will continue to delight consumers during the period.
Several parts of north and west India reeled under scorching heat wave with the temperature touching 50 degree Celsius in Rajasthan's Churu district on Tuesday, even as the meteorological department predicted very heavy rainfall in Assam and Meghalaya till May 28.
After making landfall near Puducherry on November 30, Cyclone Fengal weakened on Sunday, but torrential downpour under its influence paralysed the union territory, with the Army stepping in to evacuate stranded persons in inundated streets.
It will also be the third cyclone to hit the western state in June since 1965, the meteorological office said.
The IMD defines a normal monsoon as one which delivers between 96 and 104 per cent of the 50-year average rainfall for the season.
Low temperature -- Delhi recorded a minimum of 13.5 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, the season's lowest so far -- allowed accumulation of pollutants, said Mahesh Palawat, vice president (meteorology and climate change), Skymet Weather.
Drought looms as large this year as it did in 2009, even as attempts to play down its impact surface.
India is likely to experience below-normal monsoon rainfall this year, with a 20 per cent chance of drought due to the end of La Nina conditions and the potential for El Nino to take hold, private forecasting agency Skymet Weather said on Monday.
Although the monsoon is not active, it is not sluggish either he said, adding that the eastern coast, central India and north east are getting fairly good rains. Even Maharashtra and parts of peninsula are having rain.
The crucial south-west monsoon is expected to bring its first showers to Kerala on June 3, a slight delay that could be attributed to the cyclone activity over the Bay of Bengal. "Southwest monsoon onset over Kerala is likely to be on June 3," said Chief Monsoon Forecaster, India Meteorological Department D Sivananda Pai.
Streets in localities like Hindmata, Dadar, Sion, King's Circle and Wadala are waterlogged. Suburban trains were running slow when reports last came in.
The drought of 2009 still haunts the India Meteorological Department.
Senior officials of the India Meteorological Department said they were now more confident that El Nino would indeed appear during the second half of the southwest season, compared to April when the last official forecast was made.
Addressing a press conference virtually, India Meteorological Department Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said September was likely to witness normal rainfall in the range of 91-109 per cent of the long period average of 167.9 mm.
The quake, with a magnitude of 5.9 on the Richter Scale, hit south Andaman region at 01:21 hours, the India Meteorological Department said in New Delhi.
At present, the Met department is often unable to provide exact information on the exact amount of rain over a localised area.
Heavy waterlogging was witnessed in several towns and cities, while roads were closed in rural areas on Friday morning due a heavy spell.
The CII has suggested a 5-point agenda on the measures that need to be undertaken by central and state governments to stave off the adverse effects of a deficient monsoon. Let's find out what this agenda is. . .
Highly placed sources said that Singh was apprised of the agricultural situation across the country and officials expected that 95 per cent of sowing operations would be completed this month. The weather office expects monsoon to be near normal in July, which is crucial for the 235-million strong farming community.
The landfall process of the severe cyclonic storm Dana was complete on Friday morning and the system took at least eight and half hours to enter the landmass, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
The five warmest years in Indian weather history have occurred in the past 14 years -- the others being 2009, 2017 and 2010, in order of intensity.
Mohapatra said there is a 40 per cent chance of a normal rainfall, 22 per cent above normal, 12 per cent excess and 18 per cent below normal.
Temperatures remained above 45 degrees Celsius in large parts of Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Chandigarh and Uttar Pradesh, affecting daily life as many chose to remain indoors in the afternoon.
