2020 starts with 40 pc more rainfall
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 10 2020: With low to moderate rainfall lashing the State continually since the beginning of the current year, the volume of rainfall received by the State during the current month has exceeded the average rainfall rate of the month of January by 40 per cent.

Talking to The Sangai Express, ICAR, Manipur Centre Joint Director Dr I Meghachandra said that normally there is little rainfall in the State during the Manipuri calendar month of Wakching which partially falls in January but this year the rainfall rate in the month of Wakching has exceeded the average volume.

Environmentalist Dr Kh Shamungou, while pointing out that paddy could not be cultivated on large tracts of fields last year due to highly deficient rainfall which is contradicted by the spate of rainfall witnessed in the State since the beginning of the year, asserted that the State has also started witnessing impacts of global climate change.

The unusual continuous rainfall in the month of Wakching testifies drastic changes in humidity, temperature, rainfall pattern and overall climatic conditions of the State, Dr Shamungou said.

He said that crops and vegetables cultivated during winter season would be seriously affected if the rainfall continues any longer.

Meanwhile, information received from Agriculture Department said that necessary measures have been initiated to cultivate winter crops and vegetables at all those fields where paddy could not be cultivated last year due to highly deficient rainfall last year.

Under the same initiative, the department has already distributed mussori (masoor dal) seeds, seeds of different pulses, maize, wheat and mustard for cultivation on 15,869 hectares.

Notably, the State's total paddy yield last year was 37 per cent lower than the expected yield as paddy could not be cultivated on vast tracts of fields due to acute shortage of water.

Mercury dipped along with the rain sending many parts of the State in a cold grip.

Meanwhile dense fog is expected over Bihar, Uttara-khand, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, west Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Odisha, reports TNN.

Ground frost is likely over Punjab and northwest Rajasthan.

Scattered snow/rain and thunderstorm have been forecast over Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

Isolated snow/rain is possible over Himachal Pradesh.

Isolated rain is expected over Andhra Pradesh.

Dry weather is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Sikkim, West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maha-rashtra, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

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