Monsoon picks up

The delayed southwest monsoon appears to have picked up momentum in several parts of the country, with as many as 21 sub-divisions receiving normal to excess rains, except the northwestern region.

The country as a whole has received near-normal rainfall last week and 21 of the 36 meteorological sub-divisions received normal to excess rains, the weather office said.

In the other 15 sub-divisions, rainfall was either deficient or scanty, it said. The peninsular region received widespread rains — 23 per cent more than the normal — with the west coast accounting for very heavy falls.

Central and north-east India also received near-normal rainfall. However, rainfall was deficient by 59 per cent over northwestern parts of the country.

West Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Chandigarh & Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat sub-divisions were the worst affected, with rainfall deficiency of more than 60 per cent, and weatherman said.

The northwestern region is expected to experience scattered rainfall during the next week, with Uttar Pradesh likely to get fairly widespread rain over the next couple of days.