Delhi finally welcomes monsoon showers; rainy season covers entire India 9 days early

Delhi and its adjoining NCR region finally witnessed the onset of monsoon on Sunday (June 29) with light showers, bringing much-needed respite from the prolonged heat and annoying humidity. The several regions of the country have been covered with rain-laden clouds after the arrival of monsoon, nine days earlier than its expected date of July 8. Meanwhile, Delhi has experienced monsoon arrival two days after the normal scheduled date, June 27.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday confirmed that the monsoon has officially arrived, covering the entire India by June 29. “The monsoon has covered the entire country on June 29, 2025, against the expected date of July 8, 2025," the IMD said.

The IMD also indicated that the advancement of the monsoon into the remaining areas of Rajasthan, West Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and all of Delhi on Sunday, marked the entry into the entire India. “The Southwest Monsoon has further advanced into remaining parts of Rajasthan, West Uttar Pradesh and Haryana and the entire Delhi today, the 29th June 2025. Thus, it covered the entire country on 29th June, 2025,” the IMD said in a statement on Sunday, HT reported.

The monsoon in Kerala first arrived on May 24, before the scheduled norm, which later advanced northward, reaching Mumbai by May 26, the earliest in the region after 25 years. Although the seasonal monsoon reached Kerala on 24 May, making it the fourth earliest onset since 2001, its 36-day progression from the southern coast to Delhi has been the sixth slowest in the same timeframe.

IMD issues 'yellow alert' for Delhi

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for Delhi on Monday, predicting light to moderate rainfall. Light showers are expected to continue from 1 to 5 July. Meanwhile, several parts of northwest, central, eastern, and northeastern India are likely to witness heavy to very heavy rainfall over the next week, with isolated extremely heavy spells forecast for Jharkhand and Odisha on 30 June.

Meteorologist Ashwary Tiwari, who runs the IndiaMetsky account on social media, said a low-pressure system over the Bay of Bengal is expected to increase moisture flow by Monday. “The low-pressure area will move over the axis and feed moisture, increasing its strength and depth. We can expect more rain over Delhi and other parts of northwest India on Monday,” he said.

This year's monsoon progression has shown varied timing across regions. It began in Kerala on 24 May, eight days earlier than usual and the fourth earliest arrival since 2001. The rains reached Mumbai by 26 May, well ahead of the normal 11 June timeline, but paused in early June before picking up pace again from 16 June.

The onset of the monsoon plays a significant role for the agricultural sector of India, on which at least 700 million people depend for their livelihood. It accounts for 70 per cent of the annual rainfall of India, proving crucial for yields of rice, wheat, oilseeds and sugarcane in a country where farming covers employment for most of the population residing in the rural areas, contributing about 15 per cent to the economy.