The southwest monsoon is expected to advance further across several parts of the country over the next few days, bringing widespread rainfall to many regions while also triggering thunderstorms, strong winds and isolated spells of extremely heavy rain, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). At the same time, parts of north India are likely to experience heatwave conditions for another one to two days before temperatures begin to fall.
The IMD said conditions are favourable for the monsoon to move into more parts of the North Arabian Sea, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, the remaining parts of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar, as well as parts of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand during the next two days. During the following two to three days, the monsoon is expected to cover additional areas of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, southeast Rajasthan and the remaining parts of Gujarat.
The weather office has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall over several regions during the coming week. Northeast India and Sub-Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim are likely to receive widespread rain over the next five days. Extremely heavy rainfall is expected at isolated places in Sub-Himalayan West Bengal & Sikkim on June 29, while Konkan & Goa and Madhya Maharashtra are also likely to witness spells of very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall on selected days up to July 3.
Heavy rainfall has also been forecast at different times for Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and several northeastern states.
Along with rainfall, thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty winds reaching 40-60 kmph are likely over many parts of the country. East Rajasthan may experience thundersqualls with wind speeds of 50-70 kmph on June 29 and again during July 1-2. Duststorm activity is also likely over West Rajasthan between July 2 and July 5.
Heatwave conditions in parts of UP, Haryana, Delhi
Even as monsoon activity strengthens, isolated heatwave conditions are expected over East Uttar Pradesh on June 29 and over Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi during June 29-30. However, the IMD has forecast a gradual fall in maximum temperatures by 4-5°C across northwest India by July 4, with Maharashtra also expected to see a decline of 3-4°C by July 3. Temperatures over Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are also likely to decrease gradually after the next few days.
Delhi-NCR to become cooler soon
For Delhi-NCR, the weather is expected to become progressively cooler as monsoon activity increases. Very light to light rain accompanied by thunderstorms and strong winds is forecast on June 30 and July 1, while July 2 is expected to witness light to moderate rainfall along with thunderstorms. Maximum temperatures are likely to fall from 39-41°C on June 30 to 34-36°C by July 2, bringing relief from the prevailing heat.
Advisory for farmers
The IMD has also issued agrometeorological advisories for farmers across several states. Farmers have been advised to ensure proper drainage in crop fields to prevent waterlogging, postpone sowing or transplanting where heavy rainfall is expected, harvest mature fruits and vegetables before heavy rain, and provide support to banana, sugarcane and other horticultural crops to minimise wind damage. Livestock owners have been advised to keep animals under shelter during heavy rain, protect feed from moisture and provide adequate drinking water during heatwave conditions.