Monsoon activity picks up in Mumbai, adjacent areas; says IMD

The India Meterological Department (IMD) on Monday (June 15) said that rainfall in Mumbai and adjacent areas in last 24 hours indicates activity picked up after 1am towards Mumbai with maximum rainfall going above 50 mm at isolated places. The IMD said in a press release that moderate rain is expected in Thane and in west Mumbai.

On Sunday (June 14), the IMD had declared the onset of the southwest monsoon over Mumbai and the remaining parts of Maharashtra. “Monsoon onset has been declared over Mumbai and remaining parts of Maharashtra on Sunday afternoon. Since the onset is within the range of three days of June 11, it will be classified as the normal onset for Mumbai,” Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, IMD’s director-general, said.

The IMD has also predicted an orange alert for heavy to very heavy rain for Monday and Tuesday for Mumbai, Thane, Palghar and remaining districts of the west coast, parts of central Maharashtra, isolated areas of Vidarbha and Marathwada.

The IMD also said on Sunday that widespread to widespread rainfall is very likely to continue over Maharashtra, Gujarat, most parts of central and east India during next 4-5 days with isolated heavy to very heavy falls over Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, Gujarat.

"Conditions are becoming favourable for further advance of Southwest Monsoon into some more parts of North Arabian Sea, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, remaining parts of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar and some parts of East Uttar Pradesh during next 48 hours," the IMD said on Sunday.

The IMD said that India has received over 31 per cent more rainfall so far this season. Of the four meteorological divisions, the south peninsula has received 20 per cent more rainfall; central India has 94 per cent more precipitation and northwest India has 19 per cent more rainfall.