Pre-Mahalaya showers set tone for wet festive season ahead in Kolkata
Times of India | 21 September 2025The Met office predicted light rain on Sunday, with a possibility of thundershowers during the afternoon and evening.
A cyclonic circulation is set to move closer from the Andaman Sea to the north Bay of Bengal, intensifying rain from Monday.
A long spell of rain could continue in multiple spells till Dashami on Oct 2. The rain could intensify in south Bengal, including Kolkata, on Navami and Dashami when Puja revelry will be at its peak, the Met predicted.
On Saturday, Kolkata received 24.8 mm of rain. The rain led to waterlogging in some areas of north and central Kolkata.
Several areas in North and South 24 Parganas, Howrah, Nadia, and Hooghly received thundershowers on Saturday. "Monsoon is still active in this region, and the wind pattern is usually conducive to thundershowers in late Sept. These factors led to the rain on Saturday. The cyclonic circulation will move to the north Bay of Bengal on Sept 22," said deputy director-general of Meteorology HR Biswas.
Districts surrounding Kolkata will be lashed by thundershowers and rain under the impact of the circulation, he added.
"We also expect a low-pressure area to form over the east-central Bay of Bengal near the Bangladesh-Myanmar coast between Sept 25-26. This is a separate system that will trigger rain till the first half of Puja," Biswas said.
While the monsoon started retreating from northwest India, it remains active over Bengal and the east.
"In Bengal, the monsoon persists till the first week of Oct. Since Oct 10 is the official date for the end of the monsoon, we may have more such systems developing over the next fortnight," said Biswas. Despite the rain and the cloud cover, the maximum temperature reached 33°C on Saturday with 95% humidity. North Bengal, too, will receive rain between Sept 21 and Oct 2.
Many places in the hills and Dooars could receive light to moderate rain, while some places could get heavy rain. Prior to the low-pressure forming over Bay of Bengal, heavy rainfall may occur across the coastal areas of south Bengal, including East and West Midnapore and South 24 Parganas. The rain could be accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty wind at a speed 30-40 km/hour.
