4 days Ago By Neha Madaan
Pune: The monsoon this year has not entered a break phase so far making it the first such occurrence since 2016, India Meteorological Department ( IMD ) data shows. This uninterrupted monsoon activity represents a significant departure from patterns observed in recent years. As a result, of the 729 districts monitored, 548 (75%) have received normal, excess, or largely excess rainfall , according to the IMD's statewise distribution data for June 1 to September 14, 2024.
Monsoon breaks, characterized by at least three consecutive days of severely reduced rainfall over central India's core monsoon region, have been a consistent feature of the country's monsoon rainfall pattern. These breaks typically occur when the monsoon trough shifts from its usual position, leading to significant rainfall variability. An IMD official said, "There were two significant break periods in 2023 from Aug 5-18 and Aug 27-Sept 3, resulting in record low August rainfall.
Similarly, 2022 experienced seven days of break across July and August. The no-break monsoon season was last experienced in 2016 in July and August." IMD scientist SD Sanap said in comparison to the last year, when there was no monsoon rainfall on several days in Central India leading to a monsoon break, this time, there has been continuous rainfall in most regions in the monsoon's core zone.
Raghu Murtugudde, professor at IIT Bombay and Emeritus Professor at University of Maryland, said, "This monsoon is very atypical. We have seen a continuous supply of moisture without extended breaks, which is rare. The record-breaking warm years of 2023 and 2024 may have contributed to this pattern.
While we've observed shorter pauses in rainfall, they haven't developed into full-fledged breaks as we'd typically expect. This persistent activity has led to significant regional variations in rainfall distribution." He added that despite overall continuity, some areas have faced challenges __the region west of Madhya Pradesh and east of Gujarat remained parched for an extended period, only receiving some respite in August.
"The Himalayan foothills, stretching from eastern Uttar Pradesh through Bihar to Jharkhand, have experienced sub-par rainfall. This suggests that even without clear break phases, monsoon winds aren't consistently reaching all areas with sufficient moisture," Murtugudde added. What Is The Impact? Continuous monsoon activity reflects in the rainfall distribution across India Dry air from arid regions such as Pakistan and Afghanistan couldn't enter India for most of the season, preventing the breaks quote A no-break scenario is interesting.
We are seeing less intense breaks over the core zone. However, these are not strong enough so as to be classified as breaks. Since proper breaks were not there this year, the overall rainfall has been good, especially if you compare August 2024 to August 2023 Akshay Deoras, research scientist at UK's University of Reading.
