Mahabaleshwar records highest 594 mm rainfall in 51 years

Mumbai: The popular picturesque hill station of Mahabaleshwar in Satara district of western Maharashtra has received more than a record 1,500 mm rainfall in the last three days.

Incidentally, Mahabaleshwar received 594.4 mm rainfall during 24-hour period between Wednesday and Thursday, making it the wettest-ever July day and second ever wettest day since 1970. Mahabaleshwar recorded 802 mm within 33 hours, by 5.30 pm on Thursday.

Nestled in the mountainous Sahyadri range of the Western Ghats, Mahabaleshwar was developed as a hill station during the British Raj and it was  made the summer capital of Bombay Presidency in the mid 1800s.

Mahabaleshwar has been receiving heavy rainfall over the last week.n  On July 22-23 , in 24 hours ending 0830 hrs, Mahabaleshwar recorded 594.4 mm rainfall.

On July 20-21, this hill station recorded 482 mm rainfall, while on 21-22 July, the figure was 461 mm of rainfall.

In



three days, this hill station has received 1,534.4 mm rainfall, breaking the previous records.

Many places near Verna lake located in the heart of the town have remained inundated for the past few days. “But now the rains are receding,” KS Hosalikar of the Pune-based Climate Research & Services said.

In fact, Mahabaleshwar is the origin of five rivers including Krishna - the fourth-biggest river of India that flows through several parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh - covering 1,400 kms - and empties into Bay of Bengal. The other rivers are Koyna,  Venna,  Savitri and Gayatri.

Known as  Cherrapunji, Mahabaleshwar -- located about 120 km southwest of Pune and 285 km from Mumbai -- has been receiving very high rainfall over the past few years, the downpour often crossing 250 to 300 mm in 24 hours. It is a vast plateau measuring 150 kilometers, bound by valleys on all sides.