Southwest Monsoon to hit Kerala early, says IMD. How will it impact rainfall activity?

The onset of Monsoon in India starts from Kerala with the normal onset date being June 1. But this time the southwest monsoon, vital for India's agriculture, rivers, vegetation and plantation will hit the state six days earlier (May 26), said India Meteorological Department (IMD) in a press release on Saturday. Though an early onset has been forecast, El Niño could shorten the before it reaches peak intensity.

In its weather bulletin, IMD said "Conditions are favourable for the system to advance over parts of the south Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Sea, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands within 24 hours."

"Extensive rain is expected along the southern parts of the west coast through May 28," it further said.

The Southwest Monsoon advances northwards, usually in surges, and covers the entire country around 15th July. The Northern Limit of Monsoon (NLM) is the northern most limit of monsoon upto which it has advanced on any given day, according to IMD.

Last year the Monsoon made onset over kerala on May 24. A deviation of about 7 days is normal and does not protection against a weak season predicted by IMD this year.

According to weather analysts, there have been years when monsoon has arrived early but the southwest monsoon has been deficient. Rainfall activity during the monsoon season largely depends on how many low pressure systems develop.