Pune: The showers that Pune district and the ghat areas experienced in the 24 hours from 8.30am on Saturday to Sunday somewhat quelled fears at least for now of the El Nino effect and its long shadow on the monsoon this year.Several areas in the Western Ghats received high three-digit rainfall. According to data from India Meteorological Department (IMD), Dungerwadi recorded the highest precipitation at 398mm, followed by Bhira at 386mm and Tamhini at 310mm in 24-hour period.The urban pockets of Pune and surrounding areas recorded varying levels of precipitation on Sunday. IMD data for 12 hours up to 8.30pm on Sunday showed that Chinchwad witnessed the highest rainfall in the civic limits at 51.5mm, followed closely by Lohegaon at 34.2mm and Shivajinagar at 31.8mm. National Defence Academy (NDA) area recorded 28.5mm rainfall, while Lavale saw a lighter spell of 9.5mm.The showers led to traffic jams across civic areas and at many spots on highways connecting Pune to Satara, Mumbai and Solapur. Residents in several city areas complained about potholes and damaged roads which made commuting difficult.Pune Municipal Corporation authorities said road repairs are being done in a decentralised manner. “The administration is using options like cold-mix for speedy repairs of roads. It proves effective in the rainy season,” Rajesh Bankar, head of the PMC’s road department. Fire brigade officials said over 20 incidents of uprooted trees were recorded in civic areas.“Many people ventured out from their homes in four-wheelers to enjoy the rain which led to increased traffic on the roads,” Manasi Kulkarni, a resident of Kothrud, said. Sinhagad Road resident Ketki Paranjpe said tourist places near Pune like Khadakwasla and Lonavla saw high footfall on Sunday.Several weather systems are bringing rain across the country. A depression near northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining areas of north Odisha-West Bengal, a seasonal trough running from southwest Rajasthan to the east-central Bay of Bengal and an off-shore trough stretching from south Gujarat to Kerala coast are among them.The agromet department has issued an advisory to farmers in Konkan amd Madhya Maharashtra to postpone sowing of rice, finger millet and vegetables, groundnut and cucurbitaceous vegetables or plant new orchards of mango, coconut, cashewnut and arecanut.MSRTC’s Pune division cancelled 25 scheduled trips between Pune and Mumbai on Sunday. “Buses are running but are delayed by over an hour. Passenger traffic on Sunday dropped drastically by 50%,” the official told TOI.Railway officials said train traffic between the two cities was normal. “There was a block of eight hours to remove the double diamond segment resulting in cancellations and rescheduling of many trains. There is no alert for Monday on train cancellations,” Hemant Kumar Behera, PRO of the Pune rail division, said.Flights to different cities, mainly Delhi witnessed delays between an hour to three hours. No flights were cancelled or diverted in Pune, an airport official said.
