Jaipur: Rajasthan’s monsoon rainfall deficit widened to 14.1%, with the state receiving 278.28mm of rain against the normal 323.91mm till Friday, according to the Daily Monsoon Bulletin. The Met office said at least three more monsoon spells are left and the deficit is unlikely to fall below 10%.TOI analysed data available from the Met office and found that, of the 41 districts, 19 are in the deficit category, 18 have received normal rainfall and four have recorded excess rainfall. No district has been classified under abnormal excess or scanty rainfall.“The situation is particularly concerning in several parts of southern and southeastern Rajasthan. Jodhpur division has recorded a 23.29% deficit, while Kota division is 20.37% below normal. Udaipur division has a 19.67% deficit. In Jaipur division, the rainfall deficit stands at 10.67%,” said a senior officer of the Jaipur Met office.At the district level, Pali has recorded the highest deficit at 51.38%, followed by Jalore at 43.86%, Banswara at 40.23%, Sawai Madhopur at 37.10% and Udaipur at 36.61%. Jaipur has received 19.79% less rainfall than normal, while Dausa is 28.36% deficient.Some districts, however, have fared better. Deeg has recorded 22.43% excess rainfall, Bikaner 29.28% and Salumbar 28.96%. Beawar and Didwana-Kuchaman have also received above-normal rainfall.The weather dept has forecast scattered rain in Jaipur, Bharatpur, Kota and Ajmer divisions Saturday and Sunday, while western Rajasthan is likely to remain largely dry. It has also warned of thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds of 30-40kmph in several eastern districts, including Jaipur and adjoining areas.Meanwhile, water storage in the state’s 693 dams stood at 56.41% of total capacity, with 7,349.8 million cubic metres against a total capacity of 13,029.09 million cubic metres.
