After delayed monsoon, deluge: Low pressure system over Bay of Bengal brings promise of rain

📌 Summary:

• The season's first low-pressure system has formed over the Bay of Bengal and will give a fillip to the delayed monsoon, bringing widespread rain over western and central India in the next 4–5 days

• IMD: the system is likely to move across north Odisha and north Chhattisgarh over the next 3 days

• Kerala, coastal Karnataka and Maharashtra (Mumbai, Pune) have had steady heavy spells for 2–3 days; low-lying urban areas flooded; ghats of Madhya Maharashtra and Konkan recorded 200mm+ on Friday; parts of Saurashtra received 570mm in 24 hours, submerging the area

• An off-shore trough between south Gujarat and Karnataka is adding to favourable west-coast monsoon conditions; the monsoon trough is active and located south of its normal position — favourable for rainfall

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS1 Geography — monsoon mechanism: low-pressure systems, off-shore troughs, monsoon trough position and rainfall distribution; urban flooding links to GS3 Disaster Management.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Low-pressure systems over Bay of Bengal typically travel west-northwest, driving rain over central India
• Monsoon trough south of its normal position = active monsoon conditions over peninsular/central India
• Off-shore trough along west coast strengthens rainfall over Konkan-Karnataka-Kerala coast

🔑 Key Term: Monsoon trough — elongated low-pressure zone from northwest India to the Bay of Bengal; its position (north/south of normal) determines active and break phases of the monsoon.