Monsoon Moves in Further after 9 Days, No Heatwave Likely in Most Parts of India for 4-5 Days, Says IMD

After a break of nearly nine days since June 11, the monsoon has moved marginally into some more parts of Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, northwest Bay of Bengal, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and some parts of Bihar on Thursday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

Northwest and eastern India, reeling under severe heat stress, may also get some relief as heatwave conditions are likely to reduce over most parts of the country over the next 4-5 days, the IMD said.

Sluggish monsoon gets in motion

By June 20, the monsoon should have normally covered most parts of central India – Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha, parts of Gujarat, and other places. But as of Thursday, the northern limit of the monsoon is passing through Amravati, Gondia, Durg, Rampur (Kalahandi), Malda, Bhagalpur, and Raxaul.

Conditions are favourable for further advancement of the annual southwest monsoon into some more parts of the northern Arabian Sea, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, northwest Bay of Bengal, some parts of the Gangetic West Bengal, remaining parts of sub-Himalayan West Bengal, some parts of Jharkhand, some more parts of Bihar, and parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh in the next 3-4 days.

A fresh spell of heavy to very heavy rainfall is also likely over Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra over the next five days, according to the IMD. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is very likely over sub-Himalayan West Bengal, Assam, and Meghalaya in the next two days and isolated heavy rainfall thereafter.

A cyclonic circulation lies over Assam and the neighbourhood and another over Bihar and the neighbourhood in lower tropospheric levels, according to the latest report.

Relief from heat

“No heatwave conditions likely over most parts of the country in the next 4-5 days,” the IMD said.

Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions impacted northwest and parts of east India for nearly all of June until now, with several places reporting both severe heatwaves and warm nights.

Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions prevailed in some parts of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, and isolated pockets of Uttarakhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Heatwave conditions enveloped most parts of Delhi, western Uttar Pradesh, some parts of Punjab, and isolated pockets of Jammu, Odisha, Jharkhand, and Bihar.

Maximum temperatures were in the range of 43-45°C in many parts of Punjab and Delhi, some parts of Haryana, Chandigarh, north Rajasthan, and isolated pockets of Uttar Pradesh.

The maximum and minimum temperatures were above normal by 4-7°C on average in many parts of northwest and east India, and northern Madhya Pradesh.