Southwest Monsoon: IMD predicts rainfall in Kerala, Lakshadweep; thundersquall in Karnataka

📌 Summary:

• IMD forecasts favourable conditions for advance of the southwest monsoon into parts of Arabian Sea, Comorin Area, Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea in the next 2–3 days
• Widespread light-to-moderate rainfall with thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds over Kerala, Mahe and Lakshadweep from May 26–29
• Isolated rainfall predicted over Tamil Nadu, interior Karnataka, North Interior Karnataka, Telangana, Rayalaseema, and Coastal Andhra Pradesh in same period
• Coastal Maharashtra and Goa to receive light-to-moderate rainfall May 26–28
• Thundersquall warning for Karnataka: 50–60 kmph winds gusting to 70 kmph, with isolated hailstorm in North Interior Karnataka on May 27
• Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre predicts very heavy rainfall (64.5–115.5 mm) in coastal/hilly districts on May 27
• Very heavy rainfall in Assam, Meghalaya (May 26–27); turning heavy in those plus Arunachal Pradesh (May 28–31)
• North India: scattered light/moderate rain over Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, East UP on May 27 — relief from heatwave; thundersquall over Delhi, Punjab, Haryana on May 28–29

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS1 Geography — Climatology, monsoon mechanism; GS3 Disaster Management — extreme weather, thundersquall, hailstorm

📝 Prelims Facts:

• IMD = India Meteorological Department; founded 1875; HQ in New Delhi; under Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES)
• Southwest Monsoon normally arrives over Kerala on June 1 (Long Period Average); covers entire country by July 15
• Comorin Area: sea area around Kanyakumari, where southwest and northeast monsoons interact
• Thundersquall = violent storm combining a thunderstorm with sudden, sharp rise in wind speed; driven by extreme temperature differences
• Heatwave criterion (IMD): max temp ≥40°C in plains, ≥30°C in hills, with departure ≥4.5°C from normal

🔑 Key Term: Thundersquall — A short-lived but violent meteorological event combining thunderstorm activity with severe gusts (often ≥45 kmph) and abrupt pressure changes