Weathermen: Lighter rains expected ahead

Mumbai: The Mumbai rains are expected to be on the lighter side over the next few days, according to weathermen. During the last 24 hours since 8.30 am on Thursday, the Santacruz observatory has recorded 23.5mm rainfall, while the Colaba observatory has recorded 15.8mm rainfall, according to the IMD. Officials have said that the Konk-an region is likely to witness moderate rains for the next four days.

“Mumbai is expected to receive lighter rains in some parts. At present, there is on and off moderate rain occurring in the suburbs, but the intensity is not high,” said an IMD official.

Skymet Weather, a private weather forecasting agency, said that light to moderate intermittent rains are likely to occur over Konkan and Goa, including Mumbai, for the next three to four days. It said that chances of some short spells of heavy rain during this period could not be ruled out but the showers would remain mostly patchy in nature.

“At present, a low-pressure area is lying over south Uttar Pradesh. This system is slowly and steadily shifting eastwards. Moreover, after 24 hours, the monsoon trough is expected to shift further and come closer to the foothills of the Himalayas,” read the Skymet Weather report.

The weather agency also said that the cross-equatorial flow will become weak as an anti-cyclone will take form in the south-east Arabian Sea and adjoining Indian Ocean. “Due to this system, winds will blow as north-westerlies, thus slowing down the rainfall activity along the entire west coast, including the Konkan and Goa region,” read the report.