Mumbai on Tuesday received heavy rain coupled with thunderstorms and gusty winds as the city recorded the highest-ever rainfall in the month of March since the Santacruz observatory of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) was established in 1944. Adjoining areas like Thane, Navi Mumbai and Vasai-Virar too saw continuous rain activity. In Mumbai, the downpour was witnessed in parts of Girgaon, Powai, Lalbaug and Kurla. The IMD said that the winds being westerly also brought in the cool breeze. “The rains are due to moisture incursion from the Arabian Sea,” said IMD scientist Sushma Nair.
For the city it was also the wettest day of the season as rain recorded in the 24 hours ending 8.30am on Tuesday by the IMD Santacruz observatory was 17mm. The highest rain recorded in the month of March has been of 13.1mm in the year 2006. After a day of intense sunshine on Monday, Mumbaikars had unexpected rain on Tuesday morning. From early morning on Tuesday, Rain made a strong presence in Thane, Goregaon, and Borivali areas. But in the next few hours, this rain is likely to move towards Dadar, Parel, and South Mumbai. Mumbaikars who went out for work had to face some difficulties due to the general conditions of lightning and thunder and rain.