Heavy rainfall to lash coastal Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh; IMD issues red alert

📌 Summary:

• Season's first depression has formed over the Bay of Bengal; eight states across central India and the west coast to receive extremely heavy to heavy rainfall over the next two days

• IMD issued a red alert for Monday for Chhattisgarh, Konkan & Madhya Maharashtra and eastern Gujarat; red alert continues Tuesday for Konkan and eastern Gujarat, downgraded to orange (very heavy rain, 110–200 mm/24h) for Chhattisgarh and Madhya Maharashtra

• Chhattisgarh, Konkan and eastern Gujarat likely to see extremely heavy spells (more than 200 mm in 24 hours) over the next 2–3 days

• Recorded 24-hour rainfall: Bhira (Raigad) 386 mm, Tamhini (Pune) 310 mm, Shrigaon (Palghar) 275 mm, Colaba (Mumbai) 265 mm, Lonavala 263 mm; Odisha's Kandhamal, Cuttack and Nawapara districts recorded 190–280 mm

• Depression located south-southeast of Balasore (Odisha), ~60 km south-southwest of Digha (West Bengal); to move across north Odisha coast between Chandbali and Digha, then across north Odisha–north Chhattisgarh by Tuesday

• June ended with a 30% all-India rain deficit (99.5 mm); improved to -24% by Sunday with July's monsoon revival

• Northern limit of monsoon passes through Jamnagar, Udaipur, Ajmer, Jhunjhunu, Hisar and Bathinda; normal date for monsoon to cover the entire country is July 8 — this year close to normal or slightly delayed

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS1 Geography — monsoon mechanics, Bay of Bengal depressions; GS3 Disaster Management — early warning and colour-coded alerts

📝 Prelims Facts:

• IMD colour codes: red = take action (extremely heavy rain >200 mm/24h); orange = be prepared (very heavy, 110–200 mm/24h)
• A depression is a low-pressure system with sustained wind speeds of 31–49 km/h — the stage before a deep depression/cyclonic storm
• Normal date for southwest monsoon to cover all of India: July 8

🔑 Key Term: Depression (monsoon low) — an intensified low-pressure area over warm seas (here, Bay of Bengal) that drives concentrated heavy rainfall along its track and is a key rain-bearing system of the Indian monsoon.