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Rain and thunderstorms are likely to continue across large parts of India until about 12 October, the India Meteorological Department has said, as a series of weather systems delays the withdrawal of the south-west monsoon.
The forecast
For Wednesday, 7 October, the department’s alerts included:
- Delhi-NCR: thunderstorms from mid-afternoon into late evening, with winds of 40 to 50 km/h and stronger gusts in places.
- Himachal Pradesh, east Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand: isolated heavy rain, with thunderstorms and lightning in Bihar and Jharkhand.
- Tamil Nadu, Kerala and south interior Karnataka: heavy rain possible, with evening thundershowers around Bengaluru and along the Karnataka coast.
- Maharashtra: scattered rain as the monsoon retreats from the state, with warm, humid “October heat” days setting in.
Why the monsoon is lingering
The monsoon normally begins to withdraw from north-west India in mid-September and leaves the country by about the middle of October. This year, according to an ETV Bharat report quoting the department, a succession of western disturbances, the weather systems that travel in from the Mediterranean region, is drawing moisture from both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal and holding up the retreat.
What it means
- For farmers: Rain at this stage can damage kharif crops such as paddy, soybean and cotton that are ready for harvest, though it adds soil moisture for the rabi sowing that follows.
- For cities: Short, intense thundershowers bring waterlogging and traffic disruption.
- For safety: Lightning kills more people in India each year than any other weather hazard. The department advises staying indoors during thunderstorms and not sheltering under trees.
After the monsoon
As the south-west monsoon leaves, the north-east monsoon sets in over Tamil Nadu, coastal Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, usually in the second half of October. It brings Tamil Nadu most of its annual rain.
Forecasts change from day to day. District-level warnings are published on the department’s website and its Mausam app.
This report draws on India Meteorological Department forecasts as carried by ETV Bharat, The Week and India.com.
Image: A flooded street in Chennai during the 2008 monsoon (file photo). Photo by McKay Savage from London, UK, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.