Hyderabad: Mumbai woke up to heavy overnight rain on Wednesday as the southwest monsoon finally reached the city, nearly two weeks after its normal onset date, prompting the India Meteorological Department to issue an orange alert for the financial capital and nearby districts.
Several parts of Mumbai reported waterlogging after intense rain through the night, though civic officials said major subways remained open and traffic movement was largely normal in the morning. The IMD issued the orange alert at 7 am for the next three hours, forecasting moderate to intense spells of rain in Mumbai, Thane, Raigad, Palghar and Sindhudurg.
The delayed arrival of the monsoon in Mumbai came after a prolonged pause in its advance over Maharashtra. Weather officials had earlier said the monsoon’s progress was stalled by weak large scale conditions before activity revived over the Konkan coast this week.
Weak monsoon raises concern for kharif sowing in 111 districts
The weather development comes amid wider concern over the weak progress of the southwest monsoon across India. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the government has identified 111 districts as highly vulnerable to crop stress as rainfall remains 43 percent below normal and weak monsoon conditions are expected to continue until July 2.
According to the Centre, contingency plans have been prepared for 315 districts to reduce the impact on kharif sowing, especially in rain dependent areas with limited irrigation. Officials said states have been advised to promote short duration and low water intensive crops in vulnerable regions if rainfall remains deficient over the next week.
The IMD has also issued an advisory for fishermen along the South Maharashtra and Goa coast, asking them not to venture into the sea from June 22 to June 26 due to rough weather conditions. With the monsoon now reviving over western India, authorities are closely tracking both urban flooding risks in cities such as Mumbai and the impact of rainfall deficits on the ongoing farm season.
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