An overcast Ranchi sky on Wednesday. Picture by Prashant Mitra

Jamshedpur, June 23: Monsoon may have arrived in Jharkhand on June 18, but the rainfall so far has been nowhere near the average for the month.

According to the meteorological department, the districts by now should have received at least 150mm of rain. But, due to a weak monsoon, they are instead facing a rainfall deficit situation.

Officials at Patna Meteorological Office, who keep tabs on Jharkhand’s weather conditions, said not once in the last decade has Jamshedpur, Ranchi and Daltonganj received so little rain after the onset of monsoon.

Since June 18, Jamshedpur has received only 57mm of rain, compared to last year’s 80mm. While Ranchi recorded a meagre 34.9mm, Daltonganj, Koderma, Giridih and several other districts recorded even less than 20mm rain. The average rainfall in Jamshedpur and Ranchi is about 200mm in June.

Met statistics revealed that in 2008, Jamshedpur received 698.7mm of rain, which broke all previous records of the last 50 years. That year on June 18, again the day monsoon arrived in Jharkhand, the steel city recorded heavy rainfall of 338mm. Ranchi, Dumka, Hazaribagh and Jamtara also received good rains last year and the year before after the onset of monsoon in Jharkhand. Jamshedpur and Ranchi received over 150mm of rain in the month of June in 2007.

However, weathermen are still hoping for a good spell of showers later this month. “A cyclonic circulation is hovering over Bihar and adjoining areas of Jharkhand. This will help revive the monsoon. Most parts of the state are expected to experience rainfall as monsoon is likely to become active in the next 72-hours. We can expect rain and better weather from then on ,” said Animesh Chanda, director of the Patna Meteorological Office.

According to Chanda, the monsoon trough is lying between Rajasthan and Gangetic Bengal across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. “Chart analysis reveals that the cyclonic circulation would help pull the monsoon trough towards Jharkhand,” he added.

Localised thunderclouds resulted in rainfall at several places during the last 24 hours. The local meteorological office in Jamshedpur recorded 24.4mm of rain while places like Chaibasa and Seraikela received about 20mm. Maharo in Jamtara district recorded the highest rainfall of 67.8mm followed by Jharmendi in Dumka district, which received 62.2mm.