Weathermen at the local Met office have predicted that rain clouds will hit Bihar between June 17 and 19, following the onset of southwest monsoon over Kerala on Wednesday.
Monsoon clouds have advanced to Karnataka and coastal Andhra Pradesh on Friday.
Residents of Patna and Gaya can rejoice all the more because the weather office predicted pre-monsoon showers from Monday to provide respite from the sultry conditions. Places in southwest Bihar, such as Patna, Gaya and neighbouring areas, are extremely humid now, quite normal before the onset of monsoon, said Met officials.
#Though the actual temperature is being clocked at 37 to 38 degree Celsius, RealFeel temperature is being recorded at around 46 to 48 degree Celsius. Meteorologists said such conditions will prevail until monsoon sets in around June 17.
"Though most places in north, central and eastern parts of the state have a cloud cover for more than half the day, places like Patna and Gaya in southwest Bihar don't have clouds." Said Patna meteorological centre director Ashish Sen. "Clear skies are responsible for the soaring humidity."#
The average relative humidity in Patna on Friday was measured at 46 per cent. High level of moisture with high temperature causes discomfort.
Discomfort index indicates the combined effect of maximum temperature and the relative humidity on the human body. Sweat evaporates easily when the relative humidity is low. With the high humidity levels, sweat tends to linger on the skin, making people sick.
Monsoon update:
Prevailing easterly winds and high level of moisture are favourable signs for monsoon. While the humidity level is expected to hover in the range of 50 to 70 per cent as monsoon advances towards the region, wind direction is also expected to remain easterly for a few days.
"Considering the pace of the easterly components of the southwest monsoon, we can expect it to hit the northeastern part of the state by June 17 or 18," said Sen. "Places such as Patna and Gaya will get rains by June 19 or 20."
The evening bulletin of the Indian Meteorological Department on Friday evening stated that southwest monsoon had advanced into some other parts of central Arabian sea, and other places.
It further said conditions were favourable for the rains to advance into some other parts of central and northern Bay of Bengal and some northeastern states in the next three to four days.
