Saturday's voting will mark the end to the marathon polling process that began on April 19 month and has already covered 486 Lok Sabha seats in 28 states and Union territories.
Irregular rainfall and a pick-up in commodity costs are expected to weigh on the demand and margins of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies. Most companies reported a sharp expansion in gross margins in the April-June quarter (first quarter, or Q1) of 2023-24 (FY24), given the lower prices of key raw materials and earlier price hikes. Furthermore, there were expectations that cost savings being passed on could reflect in volume growth going forward. However, these hopes could be dashed if demand recovery, especially in the rural segment, stalls, and gains on the raw material front start to recede.
Tamil Nadu has sought an interim relief of Rs 5,060 crore from the Centre in connection with the damage caused by Cyclone Michaung, the state government said on Wednesday.
A water crisis looms large over the capital city of Himachal Pradesh with heavy rains in the past few days damaging supply schemes and causing silt in water resources.
Four southern districts in Tamil Nadu are experiencing severe flooding after record-breaking rainfall, prompting Chief Minister MK Stalin to schedule a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi for immediate relief measures.
Severe cyclonic storm Michaung crossed south Andhra Pradesh coast close to Bapatla district between 12.30 pm and 2.30 pm on Tuesday with maximum gales of up to 90-100 km per hour speed, said an Amaravati Meteorological Centre official.
For Tuesday, the IMD said heavy to very heavy rains, with extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places, are likely over Assam and Meghalaya.
Heavy rains continued to pound Chennai and nearby districts on Monday under the impact of a cyclonic storm, which is likely to cross the coast in Andhra Pradesh on December 5.
The southwest monsoon has started on a weak note and this has delayed the sowing of kharif crops. Though a cause for concern, the situation hasn't reached a stage where it warrants any panic response. Moreover, according to meteorologists and industry players, monsoon rains will witness a revival in the coming few weeks.
A depression over the southeast Arabian Sea, south of Porbandar in Gujarat, is likely to move northwestward and intensify into a cyclonic storm, the India Meteorological Department said on Tuesday.
The weather office cautioned the fishermen not to venture into sea in the Odisha Coast.
As the monsoon recedes from most of India, Guwahati was flooded after incessant rainfall.
Conditions were becoming favourable for further advance of the southwest monsoon over some more parts of the south peninsula and east India and adjoining areas between June 18 and 21.
The state government has begun preparations to deal with the fallout of the cyclone as it will bring very strong wind and heavy rainfall in the region, officials said.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said the borewell in his house in Sadashivanagar in the state capital has gone dry for the first time. This happened despite the fact that Sadashivanagar is located next to Sankey Lake.
The India Meteorological Department attributed the westerly wind and moisture incursion from the Arabian Sea as the reason behind the spell.
On December 1and 2, flood-ravaged Chennai received more rainfall in 24 hours than it had seen on any day since 1901, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
An alert of "very heavy" rainfall in Mumbai has been issued by the Indian Meteorological Department's regional centre on Tuesday, with the rains expected to intensify in the next 24 hours.
The overall deficiency in the cumulative monsoon rainfall since the beginning of the season has shrunk from about 46 per cent in the end of June to 24 per cent by July 16. The key agricultural belt of north-western India is still facing about 44 per cent rainfall deficiency, though there have been some welcome showers throughout the region in the past couple of weeks. The north-eastern region is also facing about 40 per cent rain deficieny.
"Seventeen states, including the national capital, are rain deficient, while two states fall in the scanty rainfall category. The rest have witnessed good rainfall," IMD Director Dr S K Subramaniam said.
Cyclone Biparjoy has left a trail of destruction in Gujarat's Kutch and Saurashtra regions as some 1,000 villages are still without power with hundreds of electric poles getting damaged, while several coastal villages were flooded due to heavy rains and incoming seawater, officials said on Friday, a day after the storm made landfall.
The India Meteorological Department has issued a 'Red Alert' and predicted 'very heavy' to 'extremely heavy' rainfall across several districts of Assam over the next five days.
Intense monsoon rains brought normal life to a standstill in several parts of eastern and central Rajasthan, flooding out roads, rail tracks, low-lying residential areas and hospitals and claiming seven lives since Sunday night.
A prolonged break in monsoon rains in most parts of the country is threatening to hit the yield of kharif crops. It could even delay the upcoming rabi sowing. Major agricultural states, such as Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Gujarat, have witnessed a deficit of 30-80 per cent in southwest monsoon rainfall in August compared to the long-period average for the month. Meteorologists see no big revival in monsoon rains from hereon, though they forecast "some activity" over the Bay of Bengal on September 5-6.
The water level of the Yamuna in Delhi, which has been hovering around the danger mark of 205.33 metres for the last few days, dropped below the threshold again on Saturday morning.
Weather.com has predicted Thunderstorms with an 80 percent chance of rain for the region of Kandy on Saturday.
The cyclone is expected to make landfall on Thursday evening as a 'very severe cyclonic storm' with maximum wind speed reaching up to 150 kilometres per hour, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
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.
A dozen people lost their lives in various rain-related incidents in and around Chennai while personnel on fishing boats and farm tractors were engaged in rescuing stranded people on Tuesday.
Relief work gained momentum on Saturday as rainfall came to a halt in many parts of the state. When contacted, a senior official told PTI that 16 people lost their lives in rain-related incidents as per the reports received till Saturday afternoon.
An official from East Delhi district said the evacuation process began on Monday night after floodwaters entered some areas.
Heavy rains lashed the northern region on Thursday inundating low-lying areas, throwing vehicular traffic out of gear and disrupting power supply.
The government said relief activities have been expedited and that efforts to pump out stagnant water were on in different places in the city.
The actor was rescued with help from the fire and rescue department of the state government.
The monsoon rains are crucial for farm output and economic growth as about 55 per cent of the south Asian nation's arable land is rain-fed.
In view of the safety of the passengers, the district administration stopped the passengers at Sonprayag and Gaurikund due to continuous bad weather.
A massive thunderstorm caused flash flooding in Toronto, cutting power to 3,00,000 in the city, shutting down subways, and leaving about 1,400 passengers stranded for hours on a commuter train.
The local train traffic on the Central and Western Railway routes was mostly normal though the trains were running a few minutes late, railway officials said.
The mercury soared to 46.2 degrees Celsius at Najafgarh, making it the hottest place in the capital.
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