Siliguri, Aug. 22: Come monsoons, the poetically inclined might be romancing the rains in north Bengal, but a detailed study conducted by the meteorologist here reveal a disturbing trend.

“Though it is difficult to pinpoint the exact reason, the rainfall in the region has been following a particular over the past few decades. The available data indicate that the rains used to increase for 20 years and then it is on the wane for the next two decades,” said Subir Sarkar, in-charge of the north Bengal meteorological office and a reader of the geography department in the North Bengal University (NBU). “The recent trend suggests that there is a gradual increase in the rainfall,” he added.

Elaborating on the phenomena, Sarkar said: “Presently, the cloud-burst is not evenly distributed over both time and space. Even though, the average annual rainfall has remained more or less stable, albeit slight fluctuations, the occurrence of heavy downpour within a brief span has increased manifold.” Besides, there have been several recent instances of a particular place experiencing heavy shower for more than an hour but the adjacent place is dry during that period. “This sort of rainfall is extremely harmful because it causes devastating floods, landslides and massive soil erosion,” Sarkar said. Experts attribute the change in climate to twin problems of rampant deforestation and growing urbanisation.

The study reveals that the problem affects the hills more than the plains.

“However, more research is needed before one could come to any conclusion this regard,” he added.