The southwest monsoon, the backbone of Indian agricultural production, has set in over Kerala a week ahead of its normal onset. This is the earliest onset of the southwest monsoon after 2009 which saw the monsoon set in over Kerala on May 23. The monsoon used to arrive in Kerala on June 1, with a plus or minus margin of error of about seven days, and progress northwards, usually in surges, and cover the entire country around 15th July.
According to an official statement issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) here on Saturday, the southwest monsoon set in over Kerala on Saturday (May 24) against the normal date of June 1, around eight days before the normal date. Considering the onset dates from 1975, the earliest onset of the monsoon over Kerala occurred in 1990 (May 19, 1990) which was 13 days before the normal onset date.
The weather agency has also issued a red alert for two districts in Kerala warning of extreme heavy rainfalls and orange alert for the remaining districts except three districts, Alappuzha, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram – forecasting very heavy rains.
Published – May 24, 2025 12:15 pm IST
