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Mehsana/Gujarat: Widespread unseasonal rains coupled with thunderstorms wreaked havoc in Gujarat on Sunday, leaving at least 20 people dead in different districts. According to the State Emergency Operations Centre, 220 out of 251 talukas received substantial rainfall, disrupting normal life and causing significant damage to crops, sources reported.
In Ahmedabad city, a sudden 15 mm rainfall in two hours during the morning disrupted weekend plans for residents, with additional rainfall later in the evening. The unexpected rain also brought joy to the locals of Rajkot who witnessed unusual weather with rain and hailstorm.
Its impact extended beyond agriculture, affecting the ceramic industry in Morbi district as factories were forced to close due to adverse weather conditions. The untimely rains were accompanied by lightning, strong winds and storm surge, resulting in deaths in Mehsana, Dahod, Sabarkantha, Tapi, Botad, Amreli and Ahmedabad districts.
Among the casualties, a 22-year-old biker died in Botad taluka after being struck by lightning, while a 29-year-old man died after a tree fell on an autorickshaw in Mehsana district, the police said. Tragically, two farmers died in Tapi district, and one each in Sabarkantha, Ahmedabad, Mehsana, and Dahod districts in lightning strikes that accompanied the rains. Lightning strikes killed cattle and sheep in some places as well, they said.
Manorama Mohanty, director of the IMD’s meteorological center in Ahmedabad, said a cyclonic circulation over the north-east Arabian Sea and adjoining Saurashtra is likely to cause heavy rainfall in the districts of Valsad, Navsari, Surat, Dangs, Tapi, Bhavnagar, Botad and Amreli and Kutch region.
Providing a glimpse of relief, Mohanty asserted that rainfall was forecasted only for Sunday, the situation is expected to improve by Monday. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), while light rain was expected over parts of South Gujarat and Saurashtra on Monday, the state is expected to experience dry weather from Tuesday.
