Kerala has reasons to cheer even as the southern States are keenly watching the progress of the northeast monsoon. The State has received 1% excess rainfall during October at a time when Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana together experienced the sixth driest October in the past 123 years.
The latest long-range forecast issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) mentions above normal rainfall for Kerala during November, while below normal rainfall is predicted for the rest of south India except coastal Karnataka, where normal rainfall is expected. Kerala, which witnessed a drop of 34% rainfall during the southwest monsoon, was looking for some intense spells during October and November to wipe out the rainfall deficiency.
Moreover, above normal precipitation is imperative for the State not just for farming activities alone, but also to ensure water availability in major reservoirs where the storage level was precarious during the end of the southwest monsoon season. The water level which was hovering around 35% in the major reservoirs of Kerala during the first of October has now improved to close to 60%, aided by some intense spells.
According to IMD sources, the retreating southwest monsoon has triggered some intense spells in the ghat regions of Kerala which improved the inflow to the reservoirs. Though the northeast monsoon set in over Kerala by the last week of October, the cyclone Hamoon over the Bay of Bengal has dragged the moisture away from the southern peninsular region. However, the southern peninsula, especially Kerala, is likely to receive some intense spells in the coming days with the strengthening of easterlies along with the influence of the cyclonic circulations over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, said IMD scientists.
