Authorities evacuated people in many districts. \n
Tomato prices are likely to touch Rs 300 per kilogram in the coming days and the prices of vegetables are also on the rise, according to wholesale traders. Kaushik, a member of Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), said that vegetable wholesalers are facing losses as the sale of tomato, capsicum, and other seasonal vegetables has fallen drastically. He said that the prices of tomatoes have shot up to Rs 220 per kilo from Rs 160 per kilo in the wholesale market, owing to which retail prices can also go up.
Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) were roped in to rescue hundreds of stranded people, they said.
Nearly 6,000 passengers were stranded as train services on the Konkan Railway route in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district were suspended on Thursday after a river overflowed following heavy rains, while incessant downpour badly hit road and rail traffic in several parts of the state, including around Mumbai, as authorities called in NDRF to help the administration in rescue efforts.
Kumar also hinted that the Maharashtra elections could be held after Diwali.
East and northeast India recorded 29 per cent rain deficit -- 141.5 mm against the normal of 199.9 mm -- from March 1 to May 3.
Four persons, including a 53-year-old bedridden paralysed woman, died due to flooding after heavy rains in Nagpur, the police said on Saturday.
Four National Disaster Response Force teams are engaged in rescue work, he added. The village has around 50 houses, of which 17 were buried under the landslide, the official said.
Mercury hovered around 40 degrees Celsius in large parts of the country on Monday as the Indian meteorological department predicted heat wave conditions in parts of east India over the next four days and the northwest region over the next two days.
Many areas witnessed waterlogging and at least 31 incidents of tree fall were reported.
Major rivers in Ratnagiri district, including Jagbudi, Vashishti, Kodavali, Shastri, Bav are flowing above the danger level. As a result, Khed, Chiplun, Lanja, Rajapur, Sangameshwar towns and nearby areas have been affected and residents are being shifted to safer places.
A senior railway official noted that waterlogging at the new location between Bhandup and Nahur led to the suspension of local services on the Main Line from 5:15 am.
Parts of Raigad, Ratnagiri districts in the coastal Konkan region and Kolhapur district in western Maharashtra, have been worst affected by the floods. Besides that, heavy rains have been pounding parts of Satara district.
Over 40 people died in rain-related incidents, majority of them in Uttar Pradesh, while incessant rainfall in Bihar left the streets of state capital Patna and other areas waterlogged and residences of at least two ministers marooned.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde reviewed the rain situation on Tuesday and said over 3,500 people had been shifted to safer places from flood-prone and vulnerable spots across the state, where several districts, including Mumbai, experienced downpour.
Mumbai and its adjoining areas were lashed by heavy showers on Tuesday, causing water-logging at a number of places, including railway tracks, which slowed the movement of trains and vehicles on roads.
Flight services at Mumbai airport were severely impacted on Monday due to low visibility after heavy rains in the city, leading to runway operations being shut for over an hour and approximately 50 flights being cancelled, sources said.
In another forecast for August, IMD Director General Mrutunjay Mohapatra said monsoon is also likely to be normal in the month.
The current spell of weak monsoon over the country is likely to continue for the next five days, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Wednesday.
Waterlogging was reported from areas like Dadar, Wadala, Worli, Kurla, Chembur, Bandra, Andheri, Kandivili, Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg and Bhandup, among others.
The accused sought bail from the court, claiming that he was "innocent and falsely implicated" in the case. His application will be heard on Thursday.
The heat wave is the result of an anti-cyclone over Pakistan and western Rajasthan, the impact of which is being felt across the northern plains.
The cyclone would bring light to moderate rains at most places and 'heavy to very heavy downpour' at some places on November 6.
Heavy rains lashing Mumbai since Sunday have thrown rail, air and road traffic out of gear, with several trains and flights being cancelled. With IMD forecast of heavy rains for Tuesday, the authorities declared a holiday in the city and adjoining regions, asking people to avoid stepping out of their houses.
Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall near Jakhau Port in Gujarat on Thursday evening with a wind speed of 115-125 kmph gusting to 140 kmph as heavy rains lashed the coastal region, where several areas plunged into darkness due to power cuts and a large number of trees, electric poles and hoardings got uprooted.
'Usually the average rainfall per day is around 8 mm and India is receiving 10 to 11 mm per day since the last one week.' 'July seems to be very good for the entire country.'
Incessant showers lashed Mumbai and its neighbouring areas on Wednesday morning, leading to flooding in many low-lying areas and traffic snarls on roads.
The deep depression in the Arabian Sea has intensified into cyclonic storm "Ashobaa" and is expected to further develop into a "super cyclonic storm" in next 24-36 hours, the weather office said on Monday.
Low pressure over south-central Maharashtra and south Konkan is likely to move over the Arabian Sea and intensify into a depression in the next 48 hours, the India meteorological department said on Thursday. Under the influence of this cyclonic circulation, heavy rains are expected over the ghat areas of Maharashtra, Konkan and south Gujarat during the next two days, the IMD said.
'There will not be very heavy rain.' 'Moderate showers will be there and winds will be, say, somewhere between 20 and 40 km/hr, gusting to 35 km/hr.'
No immediate relief appears in sight as the India Meteorological Department issued a red alert for six districts which have been already pounded by downpour, forecasting "extremely heavy" rainfall and recommending preventive actions.
Tropical storm 'Tauktae' (pronounced as Tau'Te) which had intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm, lies close to the Gujarat coast, the India Meteorological Department said. "The landfall process has started and will continue during next two hours," the IMD said.
Rain or thundershowers have also been predicted in south interior Karnataka and at a few places over Coastal Karnataka and North interior Karnataka.
The highest 24-hour rain record in Nagpur stood at 304 mm, which was registered on July 12, 1994.
Of 213 deaths, the maximum 95 were reported in Raigad district, followed by 46 in Satara, 35 in Ratnagiri, 15 in Thane, seven in Kolhapur, four in Mumbai, three in Pune, four in Sindhudurg and two each in the eastern Maharashtra's Wardha and Akola districts, said a statement issued by the disaster management department.
The country witnessed the rainiest day of this winter with almost all parts receiving showers, the weatherman said, attributing it to a series of weather conditions.
An accurate early warning system that correlates rainfall and the potential for landslides. That is the imperative, say experts as rains create havoc in hills across India and the toll mounts in Kerala's Wayanad slopes where landslides buried entire homesteads and possibly hundreds of people.
Incessant showers caused landslides and floods in various parts of the country leaving at least 17 people dead on Wednesday while thousands more were forced to move to safety as rivers swelled and water reservoirs filled up fast.
Over 20,000 people were evacuated to safer places in these three districts. State capital Mumbai too witnessed water-logging in many areas after overnight rains on Thursday.
A day after heavy showers battered Mumbai, the rain intensity reduced briefly on Monday morning and picked up momentum again, leading to water-logging at some places and disrupting local train services, officials said.
