Abstract:
A stochastic model for determination of time distribution of cumulative rainfall for a
specific period within a njattuvela was worked out by making use of the daily rainfall data collected
from the Regional Agricultural Research Station, Kerala Agricultural University, Kumarakom. A
day having a minimum of 3 mm of rainfall was regarded as a wet day. The daily rainfall depth
within a njattuvela was characterised using an exponential distribution. Further the first and second
order Markov chain models were fitted to the data. Thechi-square test for adequacy of f i t revealed
that the first order was the best fit. Using the first and second order Markov chain probabilities,
the cumulative rainfall depth of at least a reasonable amount was worked out. The study thus
brought out that the significance of stochastic models for characterisation of time, distribution of
rainfall depth.
