North East monsoon to be 12 per cent above normal this year

A weather bulletin issued by the Indian Meteorological Centre, Delhi, on Saturday said that the northeast monsoon (NEM) rainfall between October – December will be surplus this year when compared to the long period average (LPA) of Tamil Nadu. 

Forecasts from other global coupled models are also indicating nearly similar conditions. The NEM season assumes importance from the agricultural as well as cyclone disaster management perspectives, the IMD said. 

According to Regional Meteorological Centre (Chennai) observation, the State was on the negative side during the recent southwest monsoon. The regional weather office also said that the city is likely to receive light or moderate rains for the next two days and issued a warning to fishermen.

The Deputy Director General of Meteorological, Regional Meteorological Centre, S Balachandran, said, “The wind will blow at a speed of 45-55 km at Kanniyakumari, Lakshadweep islands and southern parts of Tamil Nadu. The fishermen are advised not to venture into the sea as it would be rough.”

It may be noted that Tamil Nadu has been receiving copious inflow of water from Karnataka and Kerala due to the heavy downpour in southern states. With major reservoirs in TN almost full, the fresh spell of northeast monsoon is likely to benefit the farming activities along the riparian Cauvery delta districts.