The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday announced further advancement of the southwest monsoon into parts of the southeast Arabian Sea, Maldives and the Comorin area, as well as into more areas of the South Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Islands, and the Andaman Sea.
According to the latest weekly update from May 15 to May 21, conditions remain favourable for the monsoon to progress further in the coming days. The IMD expects the southwest monsoon to continue advancing into additional areas of the south Arabian Sea, Maldives and Comorin region, as well as the South Bay of Bengal, the remaining parts of the Andaman Islands and Sea, and parts of the central Bay of Bengal over the next three to four days.
Meanwhile, parts of Northwest India are expected to receive isolated to scattered light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds. This weather pattern is likely over Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit-Baltistan, Muzaffarabad, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh from May 18 to May 21. Rainfall is also expected in Punjab and Haryana on May 16 and again from May 19 to 21, while Rajasthan may experience wet spells in both western and eastern parts on different days during the week.
Strong, dust-raising winds with speeds reaching 25–35 kmph are also forecast over West Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Delhi on May 16 and 17. West Rajasthan is likely to witness these conditions between May 15 and 18.
