Southwest monsoon is likely to set in over Kerala on May 26, i.e. five days ahead of the estimated schedule, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced on Friday.
Kerala typically witnesses the onset of the monsoon on June 1, which marks the beginning of the southwest monsoon season (June to September).
Last year, the onset of monsoon happened on May 24, according to the department.
"This year, the southwest monsoon is likely to set in over Kerala on 26th May" with the possibility that it may happen four days earlier or later than that, the IMD said.
Earlier on Tuesday, the weather agency said that the climate conditions are becoming favourable for the onset of the southwest monsoon over parts of the south Bay of Bengal, Andaman Sea and Andaman and Nicobar Islands towards the end of this week.
Usually, the monsoon hits the Andaman and Nicobar around May 20, and it subsequently advances further west toward mainland India.
The weather agency had predicted that India might witness below-normal rainfall this year during the monsoon season, citing the emergence of the El Nino conditions as a possible cause.
As per IMD, India is likely to receive 80 cm of rainfall, while the long-period average (1971-2020) of seasonal rainfall over India is 87 cm.
