HYDERABAD: After a seemingly long dry spell post commencement of monsoon, Telangana has been experiencing monsoon rains in the last 3-4 days which will prove a lifeline for agriculture in the State.
Due to an upper air cyclonic circulation over west-central Bay of Bengal and the adjoining south coastal Andhra Pradesh, almost all districts in the state have been experiencing widespread light to moderate rainfall whereas Bhupalpally, Khammam and parts of Kothagudem district have been pounded by heavy and extremely heavy rains.
Speaking to Express, Agriculture and Co-operation Department Principal Secretary, C Parthasarathi said, “These rains will determine how much more will come under paddy, which depends on the water levels in irrigation projects like SRSP, Nagarjunasagar and Srisailam. Already 15 lakh acres in the state is under paddy transplantation. More than 90 per cent of the rainfed crops, which are mainly cotton, maize, soya and red gram have been planted and these rains will also help in ensuring good yields of these crops.
Parthasarathi further said, “The rains will also increase water levels in lakes and agricultural tanks restored under Mission Kakatiya that will in turn help in minor irrigation. Moreover, water levels in borewells will improve which would have gone down during he dry period. While these rains which occurred after a long lull have been in excess in some parts of the state while being normal or below in others, they have been widespread and prove life-giving for rainfed crops of the state. These rains will provide relief for at least the next 15 days.”
More rains to come...
The India Meteorological Department(IMD) has also forecast that a low pressure area is likely to form over northwest Bay of Bengal, which increases the likelihood of more rains. The IMD also issued a warning that heavy rainfall is very likely to occur on Sunday, at isolated areas in the districts of Adilabad, Asifabad, Mancherial, Peddapalle, Jagtial, Karimnagar, Bhupalpally, Warangal, Mahbubabad, Kothagudem, Jangaon, Khammam, Suryapet, Nalgonda and Nagarkurnool.
Heavy rains pound Bhupalpally, Khammam
Khammam and Bhupalpally districts got pounded by southwest monsoon rainfall over the last two days, with many places in these districts receiving very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall. In the 24 hours from Friday till Saturday morning 8.30 am, it rained a massive 219.8 mm and 214.8 mm at Banapuram and Pammi respectively in the Mudigonda mandal of Khammam district. In some other parts of the district like Nelakondapalle, Madhira, Khammam (Urban) and Raghunadhapalem it rained 170.5 mm, 131.3 mm, 129.3 mm and 124.3 mm respectively. In Bhadrachalam of Kothagudem district it rained 126.3 mm.
On Saturday, from 8.30 am till evening heavy to very heavy rainfall was recorded in various parts of the Bhupalpally district, with the highest of 163.3mm in Mangapet.
Deficit rains in 19 dists
While Bhupalpally and Khammam experienced a furious monsoon, in almost all other districts only light to moderate rainfall was experienced. The highest rainfall in Hyderabad on Saturday was recorded to be 18.8 mm in Charminar followed by 17 mm in Rajendranagar. In most of the districts in central and southern regions of Telangana, the rains were recorded 2.5-15.5 mm, whereas in the northern districts it was recorded between 15.6-64.4 mm
Spl officers appointed
Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao directed the official machinery to be on high alert as there have been heavy rains across the State. The officials, especially in north TS where there were heavy rains, should be available locally. With heavy rains across the state, the Chief Minister spoke to Chief Secy SK Joshi & directed the latter to appoint special officers to districts. The special officers are mentioned below:
Jyothi Buddha Prakash —Adilabad & Nirmal districts
Vikas Raj—Mancherial and Asifabad districts
BR Meena— Karimnagar and Peddapalli districts
Sandeep Sultania — Jagitial and Sircilla districts
N Siva Sankar — Warangal (Urban) & Jangaon districts
Rahul Bojja — Warangal (Rural), Bhupalpalli and Mahbubabad
Suresh Chanda —Kothagudem and Khammam