IMD weather alert 30 October: Heavy rain and storm winds up to 80 kmph in 16 states, Delhi, UP and Bihar on alert

The India Meteorological Department has issued a fresh weather alert for Friday, 30 October, warning of heavy rain and storm winds across 16 states within the next nine hours. Even though the monsoon has ended, the department says the weather has turned violent again, with winds reaching 70 to 80 kilometres per hour in the worst-hit areas and a risk to standing crops.

The 16 states under the alert are Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat. The alert covers heavy rain and thunderstorms in most of these states, with the strongest winds expected over eastern India.

Why the weather has turned violent

Three weather systems are acting together. Stormy winds blowing near the West Bengal coast are pushing moisture and instability into eastern India, an upper-air cyclonic circulation sits over south Punjab and nearby areas at lower levels of the atmosphere, and a western disturbance is affecting north India. Together, they are producing the rain and storm conditions reported across the north and east.

The effects go beyond rain. Large hail may fall in more than three states, landslides have been flagged in some hilly areas, and lightning and thunder could strike in more than four northern states. Temperatures in eastern states may fall by 4 to 5 degrees, and farmers face the risk of damage to their crops from the wind and hail.

Delhi, UP, Bihar: what the forecast says

In Delhi, heavy rain and storm winds of 40 to 50 kmph are expected on 30 October, with a maximum temperature of 25 degrees Celsius and a minimum of 18 degrees. The capital is firmly inside the alert zone, and the storm winds are the main concern through the day.

In Uttar Pradesh, moderate to heavy rain is expected in Gautam Buddh Nagar, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Agra, Mathura, Aligarh, Kanpur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Bahraich, Gonda, Azamgarh, Mau, Ghazipur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Ballia, Sitapur, Mainpuri, Pilibhit, Mirzapur, Sonbhadra, Prayagraj, Gorakhpur and Deoria, with winds of 30 to 40 kmph. Lucknow will see a maximum of 24 degrees and a minimum of 21 degrees.

In Bihar, heavy rain and storm winds are expected in Begusarai, Lakhisarai, Jamui, Gaya, Patna, Jehanabad, Bhojpur, Buxar, Munger, Banka, Bhagalpur, Kaimur, Nawada, Vaishali, Samastipur, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Purnia, Katihar and Kishanganj. Patna will reach a maximum of 23 degrees and a minimum of 21 degrees. In Jharkhand, Ranchi, Saraikela, Ramgarh, Hazaribagh, Dumka, Latehar, Palamu and Lohardaga are under a heavy rain and storm alert with winds around 40 kmph, and Ranchi will see 23 degrees maximum and 21 degrees minimum.

Hill states and the rest of the country

In Uttarakhand, Nainital, Chamoli, Almora, Bageshwar, Rishikesh, Haridwar and Champawat face rain and strong winds of 40 to 50 kmph, with Dehradun at 25 degrees maximum and 15 degrees minimum. In Himachal Pradesh, Shimla, Solan, Sirmaur, Mandi, Chamba and Kinnaur are under a heavy rain and storm alert with winds of 40 to 45 kmph, while Manali will drop to a maximum of 7 degrees and a minimum of minus 3 degrees. In Jammu and Kashmir, Jammu, Kishtwar, Anantnag, Kathua, Rajouri and Udhampur face heavy rain and storm winds with gusts up to 50 kmph, and Srinagar will see 21 degrees maximum and 8 degrees minimum.

West Bengal faces some of the strongest winds, at 60 to 65 kmph, in Kolkata, Bankura, East and West Midnapore, Jhargram, Howrah, Durgapur, Malda, Kalimpong and Purulia, with Kolkata at 29 degrees maximum and 24 degrees minimum. Punjab faces 40 to 50 kmph winds in Hoshiarpur, Sangrur, Pathankot, Barnala, Jalandhar, Rupnagar, Chandigarh and Amritsar, while Rajasthan faces 40 to 45 kmph winds in Jaipur, Alwar, Ajmer, Bharatpur, Tonk, Bhilwara, Churu, Jalore, Sikar, Jhunjhun, Dausa, Sirohi and Phalodi, with Jaipur at 26 degrees maximum and 18 degrees minimum. Madhya Pradesh faces moderate to heavy rain in Dindori, Jabalpur, Panna, Damoh, Neemuch, Shahdol, Raisen, Mandla, Khargone, Hoshangabad, Chhindwara, Chhatarpur, Vidisha, Seoni, Khandwa, Dewas and Balaghat, with Bhopal at 24 degrees maximum and 19 degrees minimum. Mumbai will see 32 degrees maximum and 26 degrees minimum, and Chennai 33 degrees maximum and 27 degrees minimum.

The alert is for today, 30 October, and covers the next nine hours from the morning. People in the affected states should expect sudden downpours and strong gusts through the day, and the department's district-wise warnings are the best guide to how severe conditions will be in any one place.