Thank you for following the onset of monsoon 2019 with The Weather Channel India. Progress of Southwest Monsoon across India and other weather updates will continue on weather.com/in. Stay tuned!

Sunday, June 9, 2019, 7.15 pm IST

Cloudy skies in Mumbai

A cyclonic circulation near Lakshadweep is causing a low-pressure area near southeast and east-central Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep area. The low-pressure area is likely to concentrate into a depression in 48 hours and could even become a cyclonic storm. The IMD has forecast scattered rain in South Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra and Marathwada on Sunday.

While temperatures in Mumbai are likely to range between 30-35 degrees, the cloud build-up in the sky left many residents of the city speculating about the chances of rainfall.

Sunday, June 9, 4.30 pm IST

Cyclone very likely over the Arabian Sea

India Meteorological Department (IMD), on Sunday, predicted that the low-pressure area situated over the Arabian Sea is very likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm. The cyclonic circulation associated with the persisting low-pressure area is extending up to mid-tropospheric levels.

The national forecaster said that the system is very likely to concentrate into a depression during next 48 hours over southeast and adjoining eastcentral Arabian Sea. It is likely to move north-northwestwards and intensify further into a cyclonic storm during subsequent 24 hours.

The department has issues orange warnings (indicating possibility of heavy to very heavy falls at isolated places) to coastal Karnataka for Monday and to Kerala and coastal Karnataka for Wednesday.

Sunday, June 9, 1.30 pm IST

Kerala districts with highest-recorded 24-hour rainfall as on Sunday morning

• Thiruvananthapuram: 160.3 mm
• Alappuzha: 160.1 mm
• Ernakulam: 79.7 mm
• Lakshadweep: 74.1 mm

Sunday, June 9, 11.30 am IST

Rain forecast for this week

• Until Wednesday morning, the heaviest rainfall will be along coastal Kerala with accumulation of up to 150 mm. Thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds are very likely across the state.
• Widespread rain and thunderstorms are likely over Northeast India, Andaman & Nicobar Islands today and tomorrow.
• Scattered rain and thunderstorms are likely over West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Karnataka on Sunday and West Bengal, Bihar, Goa, and Karnataka on Monday.
• Isolated rain and thunderstorms are likely over Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, and Uttar Pradesh on Sunday.
• Isolated rain and thunderstorms are likely over Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh on Monday.
• Snowfall is possible at higher reaches of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim today and tomorrow.
• IMD forecasts thunderstorm with lighting and gusty winds (40-50 kmph) at isolated places over Tamil Nadu, Coastal Andhra Pradesh, north Karnataka, Konkan, Goa, and Madhya Pradesh on Sunday.

Sunday, June 9, 10.30 am IST

Low-pressure near Lakshadweep's capital

The low-pressure area in Arabian Sea along with strong cyclonic circulation is currently located near Kavaratti, capital of the Union Territory of Lakshadweep. Latest forecasts suggest that the low-pressure area is expected to proceed north-northwestward while gradually intensifying. According to Joint Typhoon Warning Center, the intensity was 27-37 kmph as of during Saturday night. The intensity is likely to touch 65 kmph by late Tuesday or early Wednesday. By Wednesday morning, the system is expected to be lying about 450 km southwest of Mumbai. High waves more than 6 m are forecast coastal Mumbai on Wednesday.

Sunday, June 9, 9.30 am IST

Monsoon advances further

The IMD says that the southwest monsoon has further advanced into some more parts of south Arabian Sea, most parts of Lakshadweep area, some parts of Kerala and south Tamil Nadu, remaining parts of Maldives ­ Comorin area, some more parts of southwest, southeast & east-central Bay of Bengal and some parts of northeast Bay of Bengal as of 5.30 am Sunday morning.

Saturday, June 8, 7.00 pm IST

Cyclonic circulation over the Arabian Sea

As monsoon sets foot into the Indian mainland on Saturday, a low-pressure area has started to form around the Lakshadweep area. The system is likely to intensify and may move north-northwestwards. IMD reports that the cyclonic circulation extending up to 4.5 km above mean sea level lies currently over Lakshadweep area and adjoining Southeast Arabian Sea.

Early indications suggest that the system may not hit the Indian coast but will peak off the coast by next Friday. If the system intensifies into a cyclonic storm, it will be named ‘Vayu’. The resultant wind patterns are likely to accelerate the monsoon along the western coast of India.

Saturday, June 8, 4.00 pm IST

Southwest Monsoon Advances Further

In its latest update, the IMD said that the Southwest Monsoon has further advanced into some more parts of South Arabian Sea, most parts of Lakshadweep area, some parts of Kerala & south Tamil Nadu, remaining parts of Comorin – Maldives area, some more parts of Southwest, Southeast & East-central Bay of Bengal, and some parts of Northeast Bay of Bengal.

Saturday, June 8, 2.30 pm IST

Heavy rain forecast across Kerala

As the monsoon reaches Kerala, isolated heavy rain is forecast across the coastal state. The latest forecast from the regional met centre at Thiruvananthapuram suggest that isolated heavy rainfall is very likely across Ernakulam, Alappuzha, Thrissur, and Malappuram from Saturday to Wednesday. Isolated very heavy rain spells are possible in Idukki, Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Kannur during these days.

Saturday, June 8, 1.15 pm ISTR

Rain forecast for today and tomorrow

• Widespread thunderstorms are likely over Andaman & Nicobar Islands today and tomorrow.
• Widespread thunderstorms are also likely in northeastern India today and tomorrow. On Sunday, up to 100 mm precipitation is expected over Arunachal Pradesh.
• Fairly widespread thunderstorms are likely over Karnataka and Kerala. From Sunday midnight to dawn, south coastal Karnataka could see up to 100 mm precipitation.
• Southern Maharashtra could see up to 65 mm precipitation from Sunday late night to Monday midnight.
• Scattered thunderstorms are likely over northern West Bengal on Saturday and Sunday.

For more details, read our daily weather forecast.

Saturday, June 8, 1 pm IST

Monsoon's here, say senior officials

Senior officials said that the monsoon had arrived in Kerala today.

"2019 Monsoon has arrived over Kerala with an onset vortex off-Kerala coast. Moderate to heavy rains expected in Kerala next 2-3 days," said Madhavan Rajeevan, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences.

"Monsoon arrived in Kerala today covering parts of south Arabian sea, Lakshdeep islands.... (sic)" tweeted KS Hosalikar, Deputy Director General of Meteorology, IMD Mumbai today afternoon.

The monsoon, which reaches Kerala's coast on June 1, is officially one week late.

Saturday, June 8, 12.45 pm IST

A report in The Times of India says that the 2018-19 drought in Maharashtra has badly hit rabi foodgrain crops (comprising cereals, pulses and oilseeds) in the state. The crop output is expected to fall 63% in the 2018-19 season compared to the previous year. Kharif foodgrain production is set to drop 12%.

Saturday, June 8, 10.30 am IST

Seasonal rain update

The monsoon season formally starts in India from June 1, and goes on till September 30. Here's an update on the rains this season up to June 7.

Saturday, June 8, 9.45 am IST

Wet weather on Friday

According to IMD, rain or thundershowers occurred on Friday (until 5.30 pm IST) at:

• Most places over Lakshadweep;
• Many places over Andaman & Nicobar, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura;
• A few places over Arunachal Pradesh, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim, and
• Isolated places over Assam and Meghalaya, Odisha, East Madhya Pradesh, Konkan & Goa and Madhya Maharashtra

Car Nicobar (5 cm), Baghdogra in West Bengal (4 cm); Silchar in Assam (3 cm); Minicoy in Lakshadweep (2 cm) and Aminidivi in Lakshadweep (1 cm) got the highest rain on Friday until 5.30 pm IST.

Saturday, June 8, 9.30 am IST

IMD reiterates onset forecast

The monsoon is very likely to reach Kerala in the next 24 hours, the IMD said on Saturday morning. There are also signs some northeastern states may experience monsoon within 48 hours.

Saturday, June 8, 8 am IST

Clouds covering peninsular India, eastern coast on early Sunday morning

Saturday, June 8, 7.30 am IST

Centre moves to preempt onion shortage

Onions are a sensitive issue in India, and any shortages in the vegetable's availability can have echoes in the corridors of political power. To prevent any shortages due to insufficient rainfall, the government has asked procurement agencies to stock up on onions in advance in Maharashtra and Gujarat.

"We have asked them to procure as much quantity as they can. It should be over 50,000 tonnes," Consumer Affairs Secretary A.K. Srivastava told the news agency IANS.

Enforcement authorities have been asked to keep watch on hoarders. "The IB and police have been tasked with checking hoarding activities," Srivastava added.

According to the latest estimates of the Agriculture Ministry, the area on which onions are cultivated has reduced to 12.67 lakh hectares this year from 12.85 lakh hectares a year ago. This year, acreage and output are expected to go down further in the backdrop of the sharp drop in the returns farmers got last year.

Friday, June 07, 11.00 pm IST

The Kerala state disaster management authority has issued a red and orange warning to many districts across the state from Sunday to Tuesday. An orange alert means ‘be prepared’ indicating the possibility of ‘heavy to very heavy rain’ whereas the red warning recommends taking action indicating the possibility of ‘very heavy to extremely heavy rain’. Red warnings are issued to Thrissur for Monday and for Ernakulam, Malappuram and Kozhikode for Tuesday. Orange alerts are issued across Trivandrum, Kollam, Alappuzha, and Kottayam till Tuesday.

More: Kerala – How Paradise Was Nearly Lost in 12 Days in August 2018

Friday, June 07, 07.00 pm IST

India Meteorological Department has issued warnings of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds of up to 50 kmph at isolated places over in Kerala and Karnataka on Saturday. In addition thunderstorm and strong winds are also forecast in northeast India, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh this weekend.

Friday, June 07, 05.00 pm IST

Rains and thunderstorms were observed in many parts of the country. Troughs and cyclonic circulations are observed in many parts of the country causing widespread weather instability. On Thursday and Friday, rain and thundershowers were observed at many places in northeast India, Karnataka, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala. Reports suggest that at least 19 were dead and 48 injured due to thunderstorms in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday. The maximum number of 41 people were injured in Mainpuri district.

A state Relief commissioner said: "While six persons were killed in Mainpuri, three persons each died in Etah and Kasganj and one each in Moradabad, Badaun, Pilibhit, Mathura, Kannauj, Sambhal and Ghaziabad in incidents related to dust storms and lightning."

Principal Secretary Information Awanish Awasthi said that the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed the officials and ministers in-charge of concerned districts to provide relief to the affected people.

Friday, June 07, 04.00 pm IST

The Indian summer monsoon typically starts on June 1 and end around September 30. This year, however, monsoon is delayed by seven days and is expected to set in over Kerala during the next 24 hours, according to the India Meteorological Department.

The Northern Limit of the Monsoon (NLM) stretches from the southern Arabian Sea to Myanmar, passing through central Sri Lanka. In a normal year (based on the long-term trends recorded by the IMD), the monsoon would have been somewhere over southern Maharashtra, Telangana, Odisha and West Bengal by now.

Cross-equatorial flow—strong winds propagating northwards from the southern hemisphere—push the monsoon towards the Indian mainland. The weak cross-equatorial flow had stalled the advance of the monsoon was for more than a week in the Andaman Sea, which has consequently delayed the onset. On Wednesday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that the cross-equatorial flow has started to gain strength pushing the monsoon forward.

Friday, June 07, 03.00 pm IST

The Weather Channel had predicted that the monsoon would make onset between June 5 and 8 in Kerala. We also predict that this monsoon could be drier than normal, with rainfall at 94% of the long-term average. India’s national Met department, the IMD, has forecast a near-normal rainfall this season pegged at 96% the long-term average with ±4% model error.

Monsoon is the seasonal reversing of winds which brings around 75-80% of total annual rainfall in India. Western and central India receives more than 90% of the total annual precipitation during monsoon season.

Friday, June 07, 02.30 pm IST

Welcome to The Weather Channel’s LIVE Monsoon 2019 Tracker! Stay tuned to know the latest news, visuals, progress and impact of the Southwest Monsoon as it approaches the Indian mainland in all its massive, wet and thundery glory.

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(With inputs from IANS)

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