Incessant late-season showers lashed Pune while the Konkan region reeled under the onslaught of heavy rain on Wednesday, affecting public transport in these regions.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that Pune has recorded nearly 55% more rainfall than the average this monsoon.
The city has received rains exceeding 630mm this time, significantly higher than its average annual rainfall figure of 497mm.
The showers caused trains from Pune to Mumbai along the Manmad-Daund route, including the Deccan Express, the Sinhagad Express and the Manmad Godavari Express to be cancelled.
The bridge on the Mutha river, connecting Deccan with the city's Peth area, was submerged after a huge volume of water was released from Khadakwasla dam.
Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials said that while no damage to life or property was reported yet from any part of the city, the rains and the accompanying winds caused a number of trees to fall in certain parts of Pune.
Since the beginning of the week, Konkan has been the wettest region in this latest burst of rain, with Ratnagiri receiving over 370mm rainfall daily since Monday while Chiplun and Dapoli crossing the 200mm mark.
Water released from dams
Nashik in north Maharashtra continued to be deluged, with the district recording excess rainfall which spurred a release of more than 4000 cusecs of water from the Gangapur dam.
Irrigation department officials said that continuous showers since this week had caused water to be released from the city's major dams.
The collective stock in the city's four main dams which constitute its potable water lifeline stood at 27.49 TMC - a robust 94.28% of the collective capacity of the dams. Khadakwasla and Panshet dams were packed to capacity, triggering a discharge of water.
Continuous downpour since Tuesday has ensured that the major dams across Maharashtra are filled to capacity. Officials said that excess water had to released from 23 of the 37 dams in the State.
Marathwada’s lifeline, the Jayakwadi dam in Aurangabad district, which normally is in a parlous state with respect to its reserve stocks, was 92% full, informed authorities.
The sluice gates of the Koyna dam in Satara, one of the largest dams in the State with a storage capacity of 105 TMCft, were opened to release excess water, officials said. The Ujani dam in Solapur district too was filled to capacity.
IMD sources said that the intensity of the rainfall was expected to reduce over Konkan and central Maharashtra after Wednesday.
