Monsoon updates: SW monsoon on move, likely to hit north India this weekend

After a weak phase lasting at least 10 days, the Southwest monsoon has revived and become active over Maharashtra and central India.

Met officials expect the advance to continue, with the rain-bearing system now looking likely to cover parts of north India, including Delhi, by June 29 to July 1.

Central India and the north Indian plains, that have been witnessing a rise in temperatures, are likely to get some relief in the next two to three days, the meteorological department said.

Pre-monsoon showers are expected in north India from Tuesday or Wednesday, which could be quite widespread.

The monsoon entered southern Madhya Pradesh on Sunday while pushing further into Maharashtra and Gujarat, a state it entered the previous day.

Conditions are becoming favourable for further advance of Southwest Monsoon into some more parts of north Arabian Sea, Gujarat State; remaining parts of Maharashtra; some more parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh; remaining parts of Odisha, West Bengal and some parts of Jharkhand and Bihar during next 48 hours. IMD's latest update said.

"In the next 48 hours, the remaining parts of Odisha, West Bengal, some parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, remaining parts of Maharashtra, and east Uttar Pradesh will witness monsoon showers," it added.

After making an early arrival on May 29, three days ahead of its normal on-set date, the Southwest Monsoon battered the coastal parts of Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and south Gujarat.

However, the overall monsoon deficiency till yesterday stood at minus 10 per cent.

Of the four meteorological divisions of the country, only the southern peninsula has recorded 29 per cent more rains. The rainfall deficit was 29 and 24 per cent in east-northeast and northwest India respectively.

Of the 36 meteorological sub-divisions in the country, 24 subdivisions have received "deficient" and "largely deficient rainfall". This means, less than 25 per cent of the country has received "normal" or "excess" rainfall.

According to the IMD, India is likely to receive a "better monsoon" than it did in 2017, with the entire country expected to see "normal rainfall" between 96 to 104 percent from June to September, officials said.

The southwest monsoon arrived in Kerala on May 29, three days ahead of schedule. It had advanced over eastern parts of the country on Tuesday last week before the hiatus. Weather officials said the break in monsoon's continuity, which would be 10-12 days, is a normal phenomenon.