Kolkata is headed for a humid and stormy week with the India Meteorological Department forecasting rain and thundershowers across the city over the next seven days.
The Met office said Kolkata would continue to witness partly cloudy skies with chances of thunder, especially during the afternoon and evening hours. The maximum temperature on Sunday was 35.4° C at Alipore, while the minimum settled at 30° C, three notches above normal.
According to the IMD’s seven-day outlook, light rain or thundershowers are likely at one or two places in Kolkata on Sunday and Monday.
Rain activity is expected to intensify from Tuesday, with light to moderate showers forecast in several parts of the city till the weekend.
Wednesday, May 27, and Thursday, May 28, are likely to be the wettest days of the week. The weather office has warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds reaching 40 to 50 kmph in Kolkata and adjoining districts during this period.
The day temperature is expected to remain largely unchanged for the next three days before dipping by 2 to 4° C later in the week.
Afternoon temperatures in Kolkata are likely to hover between 35 and 36° Cs till Wednesday before easing slightly towards Friday and Saturday.
Night temperatures are expected to remain around 29 to 30° C through the week.
While Kolkata remained dry in the past 24 hours, several north Bengal districts received heavy rainfall. Raiganj recorded 74.8mm of rain, while Jhalong in Kalimpong received 66.6mm.
The Met office has advised residents to stay indoors during thunderstorms and avoid taking shelter under trees or near electric poles.