Seasonal rainfall below normal in State

The rainfall in Thiruvananthapuram was 15 per cent above normal.

Squalls are an unusual phenomenon this monsoon. A scene from Thiruvananthapuram on Friday.

Kerala registered a shortfall of 8 per cent in the monsoon rainfall during the 29 days since June 1, with Wayanad district recording a seasonal deficit of 43 per cent. The State received 567.3 mm of rainfall against a normal of 619.2 mm during the period. Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Kozhikode registered above normal rainfall, while the other districts recorded below normal rainfall.

Wayanad received only 373.9 mm of rains against a normal of 650.6 mm, registering a deficit of 43 per cent. The rainfall in Thiruvananthapuram was 15 per cent above normal, while that in Kollam was 11 per cent and in Kozhikode 5 per cent above normal. As per the classification of the Indian Meteorology Department (IMD), a departure of up to 19 per cent from the long-period average rainfall either way is considered normal rainfall, while a percentage departure of -20 to -59 qualifies for deficient rainfall.

District-wise figure

The districts with below normal rainfall are: Alappuzha (-10), Kannur (-9), Ernakulam (-7), Idukki (-10), Kasaragod (-9), Kottayam (-1), Malappuram (-11), Palakkad (-2), Pathanamthitta (-16) and Thrissur (-17).

According to the weekly monsoon update issued by the IMD, the cumulative rainfall for the country as a whole during the South West monsoon up to June 29 has been 12 per cent below the long-term average IMD has forecast widespread rainfall in Kerala up to July 6.