Sat Apr 12 17:30:00 UTC 2025: ## Indian Rainfall Patterns Shift: West-Central India Sees Increase, Timing Changes Across Regions
**Hyderabad, April 12, 2025** – A new study published in Geophysical Research Letters reveals significant shifts in India’s rainfall patterns over the past two decades. Analyzing data from the GSMaP-ISRO precipitation product, researchers found increased daily rainfall in certain regions between 2011 and 2020 compared to 2001-2010, while others experienced decreases.
West-central India saw a notable increase of approximately 2 mm per day, a trend linked to increased vegetation cover and soil moisture. The Indo-Gangetic Plain and southern India also experienced slight increases. Conversely, the eastern region saw a decrease of about 1 mm per day during 2011-2020. These trends reversed in the previous decade, with the northeast and east receiving more rainfall.
The study, led by Dr. Kandula V. Subrahmanyam of the National Remote Sensing Center (NRSC), ISRO, Hyderabad, also highlighted changes in the timing of peak rainfall. The Indo-Gangetic Plain experienced earlier peak rainfall (2-4 hours earlier), while west-central India saw a delay (1-2 hours). This variation is attributed to differing levels of aerosol loading, with higher levels potentially leading to earlier peak rainfall, as observed in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. Increased vegetation in west-central India, leading to higher evapotranspiration, is suggested as a contributing factor to the later peak rainfall in that region.
The findings underscore the complex interplay between vegetation, soil moisture, aerosol loading, and rainfall patterns in India, highlighting the need for continued monitoring and research to understand and predict future changes. The high-resolution data used in this study (0.1 x 0.1 degree latitude/longitude grid with one-hour temporal resolution) offers valuable insights into regional variations in rainfall dynamics across the Indian subcontinent.
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