Ranchi: The Ranchi office of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday issued a red alert for extremely heavy rain in Chatra, Hazaribag, and Ramgarh districts from Tuesday to Wednesday under the influence of a weather system over northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas. An orange alert was issued for Garhwa, Palamu, and Latehar while an yellow alert was issued for eight districts, including Ranchi.The Met office also forecast thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds of 40-50 kmph at isolated places across the state on Tuesday and Wednesday.Sunday’s well-marked low pressure area over northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining West Bengal-north Odisha coasts moved nearly northwestwards and concentrated into a depression at 5.30 am on Monday over coastal West Bengal and adjoining areas of Bangladesh and northwest Bay of Bengal.The system moved north-northwestwards at a speed of 6 kmph and lay centred around 30 km west-northwest of Kolkata, 70 km south-southeast of Bardhaman, 90 km west of Satkhira in Bangladesh, 140 km east-southeast of Bankura and 190 km northeast of Baleshwar at 11.30 am on Monday.“It is very likely to move north-northwestwards and then northwestwards across Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Bihar during the next 24 hours,” head of Ranchi office, Baburaj PP said.“Light to moderate rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places is very likely on August 17, heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places and extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places on August 18, heavy rainfall at isolated places on August 19,” he said.Light to moderate rainfall with thunderstorms occurred at a few places, while heavy rainfall was recorded at isolated places on Monday. The highest rainfall, 90.8 mm, was recorded at Dhalbhumgarh in East Singhbhum. The highest maximum temperature, 34.6°C, was recorded at Baharagora, and the lowest minimum temperature, 21.6°C, at Latehar.
