West Bengal is set to experience heavy rainfall till August 25 due to strong moisture incursion from the Bay of Bengal and a monsoon trough shifting towards the state, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday.
The system, which developed from a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal, intensified into a deep depression before making landfall near Gopalpur in Odisha on Tuesday morning.
Although it is expected to gradually weaken into a depression, the weather office has cautioned that it will bring widespread thunderstorms and heavy showers across large parts of West Bengal this week.
An official from the Regional Meteorological Centre at Alipore said that thunderstorms accompanied by moderate to heavy rain were likely in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, North and South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Jhargram, Bankura and Murshidabad over the next two days.
According to the forecast, Kolkata, North and South 24 Parganas, Purba and Paschim Medinipur, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, Purba Bardhaman, Bankura and Jhargram districts will witness thunderstorms with lightning and gusty winds.
Heavy downpours are likely in parts of South Bengal districts till August 25, while North Bengal districts including Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar will also experience thunderstorms.
Heavy rain is particularly likely in Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong and Alipurduar between Wednesday and Friday.
The IMD has also warned of rough sea conditions along the Odisha and South Bengal coasts, urging fishermen not to venture into the deep sea till Friday.
South 24 Parganas may see heavy rainfall on Thursday, while North 24 Parganas, East Midnapore, East Burdwan, Murshidabad and Nadia are expected to be lashed by heavy showers on Friday.
Meanwhile, Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 26.4°C on Tuesday, slightly above normal, while the maximum stood at 32°C on Monday.