Monsoon may hit Capital two weeks early

The Met department has predicted monsoon will reach Delhi two weeks early this year –– on June 16. Ajit Tyagi, Director General of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), told the Hindustan Times this was because the monsoon is in full strength this year and has been moving rapidly through the country.

The latest analysis of global Numerical Weather Prediction models also indicated the possibility of advanced monsoon well ahead of its normal schedule over northwest India, he added.

Compared to last year, when there was a break in the advance of monsoon by about a week, this year’s monsoon is much more smooth and rapid, Tyagi said.

Once it had set in over Kerala on May 31, very near to its normal date June 1, it advanced rapidly and covered parts of south Peninsula and the entire northeastern states on June 2, reached Mumbai on June 7 –– three days earlier than normal.

It then spread rapidly northward along the west coast and reached southern parts of Gujarat by June 10, five days ahead of its normal onset, he said. On Thursday, it covered West Bengal and Sikkim, Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and parts of east Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. In the peninsula, it has covered entire Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, Tyagi said.

According to the official, rainfall during this year’s monsoon has been very good and well distributed as compared to last year. Out of the 36 meteorological sub-divisions, 30 have received normal or excess rainfall this year compared to only 13 last year.

He said IMD would investigate the reason for Delhi receiving the highest recorded rain in May in the last 123 years, which did not have any co relation to monsoon. May 2008 recorded 164.8 mm while the normal rainfall for May here is 17.9 mm.

One of the reasons, Tyagi said, could be the whole westerly system –– which should have normally moved eastward –– got anchored over north western India, as it was blocked by high pressure region ahead. Once the system got anchored, it became moisture laden from the Arabian Sea, giving rise to the heavy rainfall over Delhi and adjoining areas, he added.