Subscribe
· Monsoon intensifies across India bringing widespread heavy rainfall, triggering flood, waterlogging, landslides, and disrupting normal life in several states.
· IMD issues red, orange, and yellow alerts as multiple regions face heavy to extremely heavy rainfall over coming days.
· Low pressure system over Bay of Bengal drives heavy rain in Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and central-eastern India.
· Mumbai records severe rainfall with red alert; schools and colleges closed as landslides and traffic disruptions impact daily life.
· Authorities warn fishermen against venturing into sea due to rough conditions, strong winds, and high waves in Arabian Sea.
The southwest monsoon has gathered significant momentum across the country, bringing widespread rainfall and prompting the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to issue alerts for heavy to extremely heavy rain in several states over the next few days. The weather agency has cautioned that persistent downpours could trigger flooding, waterlogging, landslides and disruptions to normal life, urging people to remain vigilant and follow advisories issued by local authorities.
According to the IMD, the monsoon has now advanced over most parts of the country, with favourable atmospheric conditions expected to help it progress further into the remaining regions of northwestern India. The active monsoon phase is likely to sustain widespread rainfall across northern, central, eastern and western states, providing much-needed relief from the summer heat while also increasing the risk of weather-related hazards.
A well-marked low-pressure system that developed over the northwest Bay of Bengal has emerged as the primary driver of the ongoing spell of intense rainfall. After crossing the Odisha coast near Balasore, the system is moving west-northwestwards towards northern Odisha, southern Jharkhand and northern Chhattisgarh. Meteorologists expect the system to continue influencing weather conditions over central and eastern India during the next 24 hours, resulting in heavy rain accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds.
The IMD has also indicated that the northern limit of the monsoon has reached parts of Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab. Conditions remain favourable for the monsoon to cover the remaining parts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and adjoining regions within the next three days, bringing widespread rainfall to areas that have so far received relatively lower precipitation.
The latest spell of monsoon showers has transformed weather conditions across Delhi-NCR, where continuous rainfall since Sunday has brought down temperatures and offered respite from intense heat. However, intermittent rain has also led to traffic congestion and waterlogging in several low-lying areas, affecting daily commuters.
In Maharashtra, the situation remains more severe. Mumbai and neighbouring districts have witnessed persistent heavy rainfall, prompting the IMD to issue a red alert. As a precautionary measure, schools and colleges in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar and Pune remained closed on Monday. Heavy rainfall also triggered a landslide near Tunnel-2 on the Pune-Mumbai Link Road, disrupting traffic and highlighting the risks posed by saturated hill slopes during the monsoon season.
The IMD has forecast extremely heavy rainfall over parts of Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Konkan and Goa, and Madhya Maharashtra, where rainfall could exceed 204.5 mm at isolated locations. These regions remain under orange and red alerts as authorities prepare for possible flooding and related emergencies.
Heavy to very heavy rainfall is also expected over eastern Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Saurashtra and Kutch, and Uttarakhand. Meanwhile, Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Punjab, Jharkhand, Vidarbha, Marathwada, West Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Jammu and Kashmir, and several northeastern states are likely to receive heavy rainfall, with yellow alerts issued for these areas.
The weather department has warned that prolonged rainfall could inundate low-lying areas, disrupt transport services and increase the risk of flash floods, particularly in urban centres and vulnerable river basins.
Along with heavy rainfall, several states are expected to experience thunderstorms, lightning and strong winds. Coastal Karnataka, Telangana and parts of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands may witness wind speeds of up to 60 kmph, while many other states could experience gusts ranging between 40 and 50 kmph during thunderstorms.
Marine conditions are also expected to remain rough over both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. Wind speeds may reach up to 65 kmph in some areas, making sea conditions hazardous. The IMD has advised fishermen not to venture into the sea until weather conditions improve and urged those already at sea to return to the coast at the earliest.
The IMD has appealed to residents in vulnerable areas to avoid waterlogged roads, swollen rivers and landslide-prone regions during the active monsoon phase. People have been advised to stay indoors during thunderstorms and avoid taking shelter under trees or in open fields when lightning activity is reported.
Farmers have been encouraged to ensure proper drainage in agricultural fields, protect harvested crops from rain damage and postpone fertilizer or pesticide application during periods of heavy rainfall. Livestock owners have also been advised to move animals to safer locations.
With the southwest monsoon expected to remain active over much of the country in the coming days, authorities have urged citizens to monitor official weather updates regularly and exercise caution as India enters one of the most intense phases of the rainy season.
