By: Talat Mohsin
Mahabaleshwar, a small town in India’s forested Western Ghats range has become the wettest place in India this year, receiving a rainfall of 5,619 mm so far. It has beaten Cherrapunji, which had received the maximum rainfall in India in 2017.
According to reports, the low pressure that had formed over West Bengal and Odisha and it’s movement towards central India was the cause behind this heavy rainfall. Cherrapunji receives heavy rainfall by the condensation of moisture from Bay of Bengal over the Khasi hills. A similar phenomenon occurs in Mahabaleshwar, where rainfall takes place due to condensation of moisture from the Arabian sea.
Cherrapunji previously used to receive an average rainfall of 8000 mm. Last year it had received a rainfall of 7632.2 mm against 5553.2 mm of Mahabaleshwar. According to sources, if the trends continue, Mahabaleshwar will emerge as the wettest place of India this year.
Cherrapunji is also famous throughout the world as a Guinness World records holder. It holds two records-one for the maximum amount of rainfall in a single year with 24672 mm of rainfall recorded between August 1860 and July 1861. The other record is for receiving the maximum amount of rainfall in a single month with 9300 mm in July 1861.
