Southwest Monsoon Likely To Reach Kerala Around May 31: IMD

New Delhi: There’s good news for a country which has endured scorching temperatures in April and early May.

The onset of southwest monsoon over Kerala is expected around May 31, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Wednesday.

The southwest monsoon normally arrives in Kerala on June 1, with a standard deviation of about 7 days. Then it advances northwards, and covers the entire country around July 15.

IMD’s latest projections predict this year’s monsoon is likely to arrive in Kerala around May 31, with a model error margin of ± 4 days.

IMD’s state-of-the-art statistical model incorporates six key factors to predict monsoon onset date, including minimum temperatures over northwest India, pre-monsoon rainfall patterns over the south peninsula and various atmospheric parameters over the equatorial southeast Indian Ocean and southwest Pacific Ocean.

May 31 and June are still more than a fortnight away. For the time being, there is no respite from the torrid summer as a fresh wave of scorching heat is set to sweep over northwest and east India, beginning May 16, IMD said.

“Heat wave conditions very likely in isolated pockets over Gujarat Region during 15th-17th; Konkan on 15th & 16th; Saurashtra & Kutch on 16th & 17th; Delhi, Jharkhand, Gangetic West Bengal, Odisha on 18th & 19th May, 2024,” IMD said.