Patna: Bihar continued to witness contrasting weather conditions on Friday, with hot and dry conditions prevailing across southern districts while several parts of north Bihar received rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) Meteorological Centre in Patna, weather conditions are expected to remain largely unchanged over the next three to four days. The department stated that Patna and 14 districts of south Bihar are likely to experience dry weather along with high day and night temperatures.
Meanwhile, a warning for thunderstorms, lightning and rain has been issued for parts of seven districts in north Bihar, including Supaul, Araria, Kishanganj, Saharsa, Sheikhpura, Purnia and Katihar, where cloudy skies are expected in isolated areas.
The weather office has also predicted a possible change in weather conditions around May 26, with light drizzle likely at some places, including Patna.
Bhagalpur recorded wind speeds of 59 kmph during the day. A drop in maximum temperatures was observed in Patna and 18 other districts on Friday.
Despite the slight dip, several districts continued to reel under intense heat. Dehri remained the hottest place in the state with a maximum temperature of 44.8 degrees Celsius, followed by Kaimur at 44.3 degrees Celsius, Gaya at 42.4 degrees Celsius, Buxar at 42.1 degrees Celsius, Arwal at 40.4 degrees Celsius and Chhapra at 40.2 degrees Celsius. Patna recorded a maximum temperature of 38.2 degrees Celsius.
During the last 24 hours, rainfall activity was reported from several districts of north Bihar, including Madhubani, Darbhanga, Madhepura and Khagaria. Jhajharpur in Madhubani district recorded the highest rainfall in the state at 95.2 mm.
Other major rainfall figures included 71 mm in Lakhanpur, 54 mm in Basopatti, 45 mm in Jayanagar and 31 mm in Rajnagar, all in Madhubani district. In Madhepura district, Puraini received 26 mm rainfall, while Udakishunganj recorded 22 mm. Ghanshyampur in Darbhanga recorded 22 mm rainfall, while Alinagar in Darbhanga, Beldaur in Khagaria and Sattar Kataiya in Saharsa each received 18 mm rainfall.
Major cities recorded the following temperatures on Friday:
- Patna: 38.2°C maximum, 28.1°C minimum
- Gaya: 42.4°C maximum, 28.4°C minimum
- Bhagalpur: 35.5°C maximum, 26.3°C minimum
- Muzaffarpur: 33.4°C maximum, 27.1°C minimum
