Showers push up night temperature, hit crops

PUNE: Unseasonal rain lashed the city and the surrounding regions, including central and north Maharashtra and Marathwada, from late on Monday night to Tuesday morning, affecting

agriculture

operations and standing crops.


The rain also caused a drop in the maximum

temperature

and a spike in the minimum temperature recorded in the city. Weather officials forecast that the rain will recede over the next 24 to 48 hours.

Though the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) recorded only a trace of rainfall at its Shivajinagar station, residents in several areas in the city — such as Kothrud, Sahakarnagar and Wadgaonsheri — reported a moderate spell of rain early on Tuesday morning. This translated into a humid day and a rise in the night temperature. Most of the rain was not picked up by the IMD stations, with only Solapur showing a definite rainfall reading of 0.3mm.

“Some rain was expected in the city and in the northern parts of central Maharashtra on Tuesday. This is because a trough had formed over this region and parts of Marathwada. The rain is expected to recede over the next 24-48 hours, as the trough will weaken,” said Arvind Shrivastava, a senior scientist at the IMD.

Thanks to the rain’s cooling effect, the maximum temperature dropped to 27.6°C in the city — nearly 3°C below the normal. However, the minimum temperature recorded by the IMD on Tuesday evening was of 22.1°C, which is almost 8°C above normal.

The IMD has also predicted cloudy conditions on Wednesday, though the skies are likely to clear up on Thursday. The minimum temperatures are expected to drop to about 15°C by the end of the week.

Standing kharif crops damaged in districts

The agriculture department officials have already started the process of assessing the crop damage caused by the unseasonal

showers

.

In Sangli district, heavy rains were witnessed in Tasgaon and Aatpadi. The district administration fears the grape-growing farmers may suffer heavy losses. As per initial assessment, officials said grapes growing on 200 hectares might have been damaged. Other agricultural operations like cane cutting and jaggery processing too have come to a standstill.

Grapevines in north Maharashtra also bore the brunt of two consecutive days of rainfall, cloudy skies and a sudden drop in temperature. Talukas like Niphad, Dindori, Nandgao and Sinnar in Nashik district — known as the grape belt — received rains on Tuesday.

Several other places in the state reported some damage to the standing crops. The regional agricultural offices awaited more reports.

(With inputs from Abhijeet Patil in Kolhapur and Chaitanya Deshpande in Nashik)