Cyclonic storm Jawad turned into deep depression over the Bay of Bengal on Sunday even before it could make landfall, triggering persistent drizzle across Bangladesh.
Sunday's drizzle turned into heavier rain on Monday morning and is expected to continue throughout the day, says the Met Office.
Light to moderate rain lashed down on the morning commuters. While some were prepared with their rain gear, they suffered nonetheless from shortage of transport and clogged traffic.
The deep depression is causing rain throughout Bangladesh and India. Met Office forecast said the rain would persist on Monday throughout the country. The weather would start to clear up from Tuesday onwards and temperature may also plunge.
The depression will make its landfall on India's Odisha coast around Monday midnight.
Maximum sustained wind speed within 48 kms of the deep depression centre is about 50 kph rising to 60 kph in gusts or squalls. Sea will remain rough near the centre of the deep depression.
“The cyclone weakening into a deep depression has lessened risk along the coastal area of the country. However, this may cause rainfall in many places across the country," metrologist Abdul Mannan told the media.
Another depression is likely to form over the Bay of Bengal in December, forecasted the Met Office. However, it is unlikely to reach Bangladesh coast.
A cold wave around the middle of December and another around the end is anticipated, the forecast added.
Improving air quality
Dhaka’s air quality showed an improvement on Monday morning with the capital city ranking 40th worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) due to rains triggered by the depression in the Bay of Bengal.
Dhaka had an AQI score of 75 at 10:00am and its air quality was classified as "moderate".
Moderate AQI means that the air quality of an area is acceptable. However, there may be a risk for some people, particularly those who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Generally, Dhaka’s air quality turns unhealthy during winter due to dry weather.
Pakistan’s Lahore, India’s Delhi and Afghanistan’s Kabul occupied the top three spots respectively with scores of 258, 243 and 216 which is "very unhealthy".
