At 534mm, district records 11% dip in average rainfall

Coimbatore: The district received only 534.5mm of rainfall in 2022, against the average (normal) rainfall of 598.3mm, according to the agriculture department. It attributed the 10.7% drop in rainfall to the shortage of rain during summer, while the southwest and northeast monsoon brought enough rainfall. The district had recorded 732.5mm rainfall in 2021.
The average rainfall is calculated based on the data from the rain gauges that are set up in different parts of the district.
Last year, an official said, 58 rainy days were recorded in the district. A day is considered rainy only if a minimum of 2.5mm rain is received in 24 hours.
During the northeast monsoon from October to December, the district received the highest rainfall of 241.47mm in 2022, against the normal rainfall of 239.8mm for the period. The official said 22 rainy days were recorded during the three-month period.
During the southwest monsoon from June to September, he said, the district received 211.5mm rainfall, which is the normal rainfall for the season.
In summer, the district recorded only 81.6mm of rain, compared to the average rainfall of 127.3mm for the period. Just 10 rainy days were there in the summer. In 2021, the district had received 100.1mm rainfall in the summer.
The rain gauge station at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) on the western side of the city, meanwhile, recorded 680mm rainfall in 52 rainy days last year, said S P Ramanathan, professor and head of TNAU’s agro climate research centre. The average rainfall at the gauge station in the past 50 years is 674mm in 46 rainy days. In 2021, the station recorded 883mm rain spread across 64 rainy days.
While the southwest monsoon brought 260mm of rain in 23 rainy days in 2022, the north east monsoon brought 332mm rainfall in 21 rainy days, he said.