JOIN USNorth-East monsoon brings forth vagaries
This season’s North-East monsoon has been a mixed bag for the southern states of the country. Tamil Nadu and Kerala have been receiving normal rainfall while the clouds have not exactly opened up as they should in the case of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka even as four weeks remain for the season to end.
Tamil Nadu and Kerala received excess rainfall of two per cent and three per cent respectively while that is not the case for the rest of the southern states.
Latest statistics issued by the Regional Meteorological Centre here said Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, which usually receive good rainfall during North-East monsoon, received deficient rainfall of 58 per cent and 31 per cent respectively.
The Met office data, taken from September 1, 2014 to November 26, 2014, further said that Karnataka too registered insufficient rainfall of 11 per cent during the period.
A senior Met official told Deccan Herald that North-East monsoon season is the major period of rainfall activity over the southern peninsula, particularly in the eastern half comprising the meteorological sub-divisions of Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu.
Though the principal rainy season for Interior Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep is the South-West monsoon season, rainfall continues till December in these sub-divisions, the period October-December (North-East monsoon) contributing about 20 per cent of the annual total, he said.
In Tamil Nadu, 27 out of 32 districts received normal rainfall with Tuticorin district leading the table by getting 50 per cent excess rainfall. Tiruvannamalai district, which recorded 43 per cent less, was the district which saw most rain shortfall.
For Kerala, eight of the total 14 districts received excess rainfall with Kottayam region recording surplus rainfall of 27 per cent. Alappuzha, which usually gets more rain during this season, registered a less of 22 per cent.