New Delhi, May 26
The south-west monsoon has hit Kerala six days ahead of its usual onset over the Indian
mainland.
Satellite pictures released by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) showed monsoon active over a swathe of South India.
The IMD said, "In
view of persistent strong and deep southwesterly flow over the south Arabain Sea,
development of an off-shore trough off Kerala-Karnataka coast, appearance of an east-west shear zone from the Bay of Bengal to the south-west Arabian Sea in the middle troposphere, continued rainfall over Kerala for the past two days, the IMD declares onset of south-west monsoon over Kerala."
The department said conditions were favourable for advancement of monsoon over coastal Karnataka and north-eastern states in the next 48 hours.
According to the IMD, the past 24 hours witnessed rainfall at several places over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands,
Kerala and Coastal Karnataka, a few places over north-eastern states, Andhra Pradesh, south-middle Maharashtra, south Konkan
and Goa.
Isolated rainfall was also recorded over west Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Himachal, east Uttar Pradesh, Virdarbha, West Bengal, Sikkim and Lakshadweep.
The IMD said rainfall along the west coast, over interior peninsula, north-eastern states, West Bengal and Sikkim was likely to increase in the next 48 hours.
In its forecast for the next three days, the department said rain/thundershowers with isolated squall is likely at many places over coastal
Orissa and Gangetic West Bengal, at a few places over Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal,
sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, interior Orissa, Jharkhand, isolated
places over plains of north-west India, east Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
