Unseasonal rainfall in Punjab has turned significantly surplus following widespread showers in many parts of the state this week.Till the beginning of April, rain was noticeably deficient. From April 1 till the morning of April 8, Punjab received 23.9 mm of rain against the long period average of 3.4 mm for this period, accounting for a surplus of 603 per cent.The seasonal rain from March 1 was 41.2 mm against the normal of 25.9 mm, marking a surplus of 59 percent. Rains in the month of March were deficient by 25 per cent.“Light to moderate rain occurred at most places in Punjab,” a bulletin issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on April 8 said.Thunderstorms and lightning were experienced at many places, and hailstorm occurred at isolated places in the state, the bulletin added. Over the past 24 hours, Punjab recorded an average of 13.5 mm of rain across all districts.With 40 mm of rain, Moga was the wettest district in the state, followed by Ropar with 34.8 mm, Mohali with 23.8 mm, and Fazilka with 21 mm. With 2.3 mm, Hoshiarpur received the lowest amount of rain during this period.The highest seasonal departure in the state has been experienced in Fazilka, Ferozepur, and Barnala, where rains have been above normal by 250 per cent, 241 per cent, and 237 per cent, respectively.Rains have been deficient in four districts: Hoshiarpur by 64 per cent, Ludhiana by 28 per cent, Jalandhar by 26 per cent, and Fatehgarh Sahib by 25 per cent. The highest maximum temperature recorded in Punjab during the last 24 hours was 31.0 degrees Celsius at Gurdaspur, while the lowest minimum temperature was 12.2 degrees Celsius at Bathinda.The IMD categorised day temperatures as markedly below normal and night temperatures as below normal. The current wet spell has been attributed to a western disturbance as a cyclonic circulation over north Pakistan adjoining Jammu and Kashmir that persists between 3,100 meters and 9,400 meters above mean sea level.A subtropical westerly jet stream with core winds of the order of 230 kmph prevails over North India at an altitude of 12,600 meters above mean sea level. The IMD has predicted that a fresh western disturbance is likely to affect the western Himalayan region from April 11, while an induced upper air cyclonic circulation over central Pakistan has become less marked.While light to moderate rain, hailstorm, and thunderstorm along with lightning and gusty winds are expected at isolated places in Punjab on April 8, the weather in the state is likely to be dry thereafter. No large change in temperature is expected for the next 24 hours, and thereafter, a rise in maximum temperature by 5-7 degrees Celsius is likely during the subsequent four days, the IMD said.Isolated to scattered, light to moderate rainfall and snowfall with isolated thunderstorm, lightning, and gusty winds are also expected in the neighboring states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand between April 9-11.