The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday issued orange and yellow alerts forecasting heavy rainfall, thunderstorm and lightning in Madhya Pradesh, even as the monsoon fury continued to wreak havoc in Maharashtra where 113 people have so far died in rain-related incidents.
Several parts of Kerala in south India also witnessed heavy rainfall on Sunday, with the MeT issuing a yellow alert for several districts, including Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Kottayam, Alappuzha and Ernakulam.
The ‘orange alert’ which asks authorities to be prepared for possible heavy rains and thunderstorms accompanied with lightning at isolated places, has been issued for 23 districts in Madhya Pradesh, namely Indore, Dhar, Alirajpur, Jhabua, Khargone, Barwani, Khandwa, Burhanpur, Ujjain, Dewas, Ratlam, Shajapur, Agar-Malwa, Mandsaur, Neemuch, Hoshangabad, Betul and Harda.
A yellow alert which advises authorities to “be updated” on the situation, warning likely heavy rains and thunderstorms accompanied with lightning at isolated places, was issued for Chhatarpur, Tikamgarh, Balaghat, Anuppur and Narsinghpur districts in the state.
Delhiites experienced a sultry Sunday with the maximum temperature settling at 37.3 degrees Celsius, three notches above the season’s average. The minimum temperature was recorded at 27.6 degrees Celsius, normal for this time of the year.
The IMD has issued a yellow alert for the city on Monday and forecast generally cloudy sky with moderate rain/thundershowers towards the evening. An orange alert has been issued for Tuesday with the forecast of rain accompanied with gusty winds. Parts of Uttar Pradesh recieved light rain on Sunday. Agra was the hottest place in the state with the maximum temperature settling at 37 degrees Celsius.
According to the IMD, heavy rain is very likely at isolated places in the state on Monday, while thundershowers are likely at most places in the state on July 27 and July 28.
In rain-battered Maharashtra, the number of deaths due to flooding, landslides and other rain-related incidents reached 113 with one more casualty reported in the last 24 hours, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said 89 bodies have been retrieved and 34 people are missing following landslides triggered by heavy rainfall in the coastal regions of Maharashtra.
According to the official data, NDRF rescuers have retrieved a total of 89 bodies with the highest number of 47 from the worst-hit Taliye village under Mahad tehsil of Raigad. As many as 1,35,313 people have been shifted to safer places, including 78,111 in western Maharashtra’s Sangli district, followed by 40,882 in Kolhapur district.
The Krishna river in Sangli and Panchganga in Kolhapur are in flood though the rains were reported to have subsided on Saturday.