After a long heatwave spell in May, India is now staring at an equally hotter June as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of less than usual rain and above-normal day and night temperatures
across most parts of the country. “The frequency of heatwaves is quite high. The forecast models suggest that plains of Northwest India, mainly Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, could see at least 2-3 more heatwave days,” said the IMD chief, Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, on Friday. “There is likely to be less rainfall this June, so higher temperatures are expected.” More heatwavesare likely to sweep Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh. Some of the areas are also likely to experience warm night conditions when the minimum temperatures also remain unusually higher, worsening the heat stress. Even some parts of Maharashtra, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu could also experience heatwaves; however, Rajasthan and Jharkhand may experience some relief in June, but temperatures will remain high.
As part of its second-stage long-range forecast, the IMD has predicted below-normal rains for the entire country in June – less than 92% of the long-period average. This comes at a time when the advance of the southwest monsoon has been sluggish over the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal.
As per IMD’s initial forecast, it was expected to hit the Kerala coast by 26th May (+/- 4 days); however, on Friday, the Met indicated that it could reach Kerala within the next one week.
“In the next one week, there will be monsoon advance over different parts of the Arabian Sea, most parts of the south Bay of Bengal, and extreme parts of the southern peninsula and north-eastern states. It is not delayed, as monsoon normally arrives over the mainland by 1st June with a standard deviation of +/- 7 days,” said the IMD chief.
Normally, the southwest monsoonarrives over the Kerala coast on June 1 and covers the entire country by July 8. It has so far advanced into parts of southwest & southeast Arabian Sea, some parts of the Lakshadweep area, and some more parts of the Bay of Bengal by May 27.
India is reeling under intense heatwaves with temperatures soaring to over 45℃ in different parts of the country, with warm night conditions aggravating the heat stress. This has also taken a toll on the lives and livelihoods of people.
This year, the monsoon season during June to September is also likely to bring below-normal rain.
