Meghalaya is witnessing an alarming shift in its monsoon pattern, recording a 43 percent rainfall deficit this South East Monsoon season spanning June to September. While the state normally receives 2,695.3 mm of rainfall, only 1,544.9 mm was recorded this year, signaling one of the driest seasons in recent memory. Amid this overall deficit, South West Khasi Hills emerged as an exception, receiving 3,030 mm of rainfall — 64 percent above normal, where the standard rainfall is 1,851.6 mm.
Thangjalal Lhouvum, Head of the Meteorological Centre in Shillong, remarked, “For the past many years now rainfall seems to be in decreasing trend, even this year the heaviest rainfall region mainly Sohra and Mawsynram received one of the lowest rainfall.”
East Khasi Hills recorded a 31 percent deficit, while Ri Bhoi district saw 43 percent less rainfall than normal. West Garo Hills and West Khasi Hills registered 51 percent and 50 percent deficits, respectively. Lhouvum further noted, “This year rainfall was very less compared to the normal climatology,…. There was very less rainfall in North East specially in Meghalaya.”
The state is also grappling with rising temperatures. “As for Temparature we are seeing for the last five ten years record breaking Temparature, specially last year it was very high. We can say that rainfall is decreasing and Temparature increasing,” Lhouvum added. All Garo Hills districts are experiencing higher maximum temperatures, while Sohra — among the state’s three IMD stations — continues to break records with consistent heat.
Other districts also faced stark deficiencies: West Jaintia Hills recorded a massive 75 percent deficit, East Jaintia Hills and North Garo Hills 60 percent, and South West Garo Hills 64 percent. In contrast, East Garo Hills and South Garo Hills experienced near-normal rainfall, highlighting the extreme regional variation in this year’s monsoon.
