Monsoon reaches Maharashtra within 24 hours of its onset over Kerala, earliest since 1990

A yellow alert has been issued for the next two days, with heavy rainfall likely in the ghat regions and parts of Pune city till May 27

The southwest monsoon made an early entry into Maharashtra on Sunday, arriving 14 days ahead of schedule, bringing heavy rain to several regions, including the eastern parts of Pune district such as Baramati and Daund tehsils. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the monsoon is expected to advance to Mumbai and other parts over the next three days.

The eastern parts of Pune district, such as Baramati and Daund tehsils, witnessed heavy rainfall on Sunday. (HT Photo)

The IMD confirmed the monsoon’s early onset just a day after it hit Kerala on May 24, eight days ahead of its usual date. This swift progression marked one of the fastest transitions of the monsoon across peninsular India in recent years.

“This marks a strong and rare arrival of the monsoon in India. It met all onset parameters and reached Maharashtra within 24 hours of entering Kerala. The only other instance of such an early onset was on May 20, 1990,” said Anupam Kashyapi, former head of the weather and forecasting division, IMD Pune.

According to the IMD, the monsoon has so far covered parts of South Konkan and is expected to spread further across the state.

A yellow alert has been issued for the next two days, with heavy rainfall likely in the ghat regions and parts of Pune city till May 27.

The early monsoon is advancing rapidly along both the western and eastern coasts of the country. As of Sunday, it has reached more areas of Karnataka, the entire state of Goa, parts of Maharashtra, and regions in the west-central and northern Bay of Bengal. It has also advanced into parts of Mizoram, Manipur, and Nagaland.

In the next three days, the monsoon is expected to cover additional parts of the central Arabian Sea, the remaining regions of Maharashtra, including Mumbai, more areas of Karnataka, including Bengaluru, sections of Andhra Pradesh, the rest of Tamil Nadu, and more areas in the northeast.