The Meteorological Department on Thursday predicted that the Southwest monsoon is likely to hit Kerala coast on 31 May. If this happens, the monsoon will arrive before time over the southern state. On Thursday, the monsoon moved further into parts of the Maldives-Comorin region and reached most of the southeast and east-central regions of the Bay of Bengal.
As conditions are favorable for the monsoon, many areas of Kerala are reporting light to moderate-intensity rainfall. Several areas of Kerala have been receiving light to moderate-intensity rains since the beginning of this week. Ernakulam, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki, Pathanamthitta and Thiruvananthapuram districts recorded rainfall between 19 mm to 115 mm in 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the country recorded 15 percent more rainfall between March and May. Except for the northeastern states, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, all states and union territories have recorded normal or above-normal rainfall during the ongoing pre-monsoon season. Let us tell you that the IMD announces the onset of monsoon in Kerala when rain of 2.5 mm or more is recorded from 14 weather stations for any two consecutive days at any time after 10 May. Other factors include the wind field and the outgoing longwave radiation formed over the southeast Arabian Sea.
According to the Meteorological Department, several parts of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are likely to record heavy rainfall by May 30. The Department has advised fishermen not to go to sea until further notice. According to the estimates of meteorologists, along with thunderstorms and lightning, strong winds upto 40 to 50 kilometers per hour are likely to be recorded during this period.
