Onset Of Monsoon Over Kerala To Be Slightly Delayed: IMD

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Bhubaneswar: Monsoon onset over Kerala is likely to take place by June 4, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Tuesday.

“This year, the southwest monsoon onset over Kerala is likely be slightly delayed than normal date of onset. The monsoon onset over Kerala is likely to be on June 4 with a model error of ± 4 days,” it said.

The normal date for arrival of monsoon over the Kerala coast is June 1, which marks the beginning of the rainfall season. Notably, the IMD has forecast a normal monsoon though El Niño is expected to rear its head during the latter half of the season.

Private weather forecaster Skymet had earlier suggested that the onset of monsoon might be delayed and it is expected to be weak.  “First is the anticyclone persisting over the Arabian Sea; it won’t allow monsoon winds to reach Kerala coast on time. Second, is the cyclone over the Arabian Sea, ‘Fabian,’ which will disturb monsoon currents, vice-president (meteorology and climate change) at Skymet Mahesh Palawat told Business Standard while explaining the delay.

In the last five years, the monsoon has kept its June 1 date with Kerala only once. In 2018 and 2022, the onset happened a couple of days earlier and in 2019 and 2021, a few days later.