At 593 mm, Kolkata records highest July rainfall in eight years, logs 62% of seasonal shower count
Times of India | 30 July 2025
Kolkata: This July, the city recorded a bumper rainfall. Even though two more days are left for the month to end, this month has turned out to be the rainiest July in the past eight years with a rain count of 593 mm so far. The Met office expects some decent rain in Kolkata at least till the first half of Wednesday, which will add to the July rain kitty.
According to records at the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) Kolkata, the city received a cumulative rain of 241.5 mm in June. Now, with the July bumper rain, the seasonal rain count for Kolkata has risen to 834.5 mm, which is 62% of the normal rain the city should get during monsoon, which is pegged at 1345.5 mm.
In the past decade, only July 2017 recorded a higher rain amount than this July when the Alipore Met office recorded 621.5 mm rain. In July 2024, the city received 328.1 mm of rain, while in July 2023, the amount was 156.7 mm.
"The monsoon flow was very strong this July. Apart from about three dry days this month, the city received some amount of rain daily. At least on four days, the city was lashed by heavy rain, leading to the rain record," said Met scientist H R Biswas, head of the weather forecast section at RMC Kolkata.
The heaviest 24-hour rain count this month was 116.6 mm, recorded on July 25, which also happened to be the second-highest single-day rain count in the city for July in the past 10 years. Climatologically, the city should have 17.7 mean monthly rainy days, against which 26 days recorded rain this month.
The south-west monsoon arrived in the city on June 17, delayed by a week from the actual date. Even as it arrived on a heavy rain note riding on a low-pressure system, due to the delayed arrival, the entire month's cumulative rain count at 241.5 mm was slightly short of June's mean monthly rain count, which is 276.7 mm.
This July, the city has witnessed six low-pressure systems, one of which intensified into a depression. The Met officials said that such systems during this season play a big role in stimulating the monsoon flow.
On Tuesday, the city recorded 48.7 mm of rain brought by the combined impact of three weather systems — a cyclonic circulation, the monsoon trough, and an upper air circulation. "For the city, we can expect some decent rain till Wednesday first half, after which there can be some improvement as far as rain is concerned. The rain frequency and intensity will reduce remarkably from Thursday," added Biswas.