IMD Predicts Heavy Rainfall Across Andhra Pradesh and Southern Peninsula as Bay of Bengal Low-Pressure System Forms

A fresh low-pressure area developing over the Bay of Bengal basin is expected to gather strength and potentially intensify into a depression by Saturday. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), this system is setting the stage for a fresh spell of heavy to very heavy rainfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast.

On Friday, the system had shifted its base to the South Andaman Sea and adjoining Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Initially, it struggled to find traction as it had to share its moisture feed with the remnant of very severe cyclone Arnab located over Chhattisgarh. Despite this initial hurdle, the IMD has maintained its outlook for the system to consolidate over the south-east Bay and adjoining Andaman Sea before moving towards the Andhra Pradesh coast.

The IMD has forecast isolated very heavy rainfall ranging from 11.5 to 20 cm over Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam on Monday and Tuesday. Additionally, isolated heavy rainfall of 7 to 11 cm is likely over Rayalaseema and Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal on Monday and Tuesday, as well as Telangana on Sunday and Monday, and Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam on Sunday and Wednesday.

Other regions are also expected to experience wet weather. South Interior Karnataka may receive heavy rainfall for four consecutive days starting Monday, while Kerala and Mahe face three days of heavy rain from Sunday, and Coastal Karnataka from Wednesday. North Interior Karnataka is likely to experience heavy rain on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The country is currently bracing for overlapping weather episodes. The fading remnant circulation from cyclone Arnab continues to influence weather over Central India and triggered extremely heavy rainfall over parts of Chhattisgarh until Friday morning. Heavy rainfall also lashed parts of West Bengal, West Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi, East Madhya Pradesh, and Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam.

This remnant system is interacting with an incoming western disturbance located over north Punjab, along with elongated troughs extending across central and western India. These interacting weather features sustain unsettled and intense weather across North-West, Central, East, and North-East India. The prospect of further rain carries significant consequences for agricultural belts where kharif crops are standing ready for harvest, raising concerns regarding potential crop damage and delayed harvesting operations.

"Unpredictable weather patterns and unseasonal heavy rainfall present significant operational risks, particularly for agricultural supply chains and farming communities dependent on timely harvests. For businesses operating in agrarian economies, supply chain resilience and proactive risk management are essential to mitigate potential disruptions caused by such widespread climatic events." — Dr. Shishir Gupta, Founder & CEO, StartupLanes