On Saturday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an "orange" alert, cautioning of heavy rainfall and snowfall in regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Himachal Pradesh over the next two to three days due to the influence of an intense western disturbance.
This marks the initial strong western disturbance of the season, affecting northwest and central India until October 17, as per the IMD.
Western disturbances are weather systems that originate in the Mediterranean region and bring unexpected rainfall to northwest India. Punjab may also encounter heavy rainfall on Monday due to this weather system. Thunderstorms and lightning are anticipated in parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, west Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Rajasthan during this period.
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A cyclonic circulation has formed over central Pakistan and adjacent areas under the impact of the western disturbance. It is expected to intensify further, possibly merging with another western disturbance on October 15, as per the IMD.
This system is likely to draw moisture from the Arabian Sea, resulting in increased rainfall intensity and distribution across northwest India during the same period.
After the passage of the western disturbance, dry northwesterly winds from the Himalayas are expected to dominate the lower tropospheric levels in northwest India, causing temperatures to drop by 2 to 4 degrees from October 17 onwards.
The IMD uses four colour codes for weather warnings -- green (no action needed), yellow (watch and stay updated), orange (be prepared) and red (take action).
