Telangana monsoon: Earliest onset in 10 years; IMD issues heavy rain alert till May 31

The southwest monsoon arrived in Telangana on Monday, nearly 10 days earlier than usual, marking the state’s earliest onset in a decade. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) confirmed the early arrival on Monday, with expectations of an above-average monsoon season this year.

Normally, the monsoon reaches Telangana between June 8 and 10. However, this year, it followed a broader trend across India, where several states are witnessing early rainfall activity.

According to the IMD’s update from New Delhi, the monsoon has also moved into parts of Maharashtra (including Mumbai), Karnataka (including Bengaluru), Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.

IMD-Hyderabad has issued a warning for heavy to very heavy rainfall in several regions across Telangana, including Hyderabad. The advisory includes rainfall alerts for Monday and Tuesday, and a stronger alert for Thursday through Saturday, Telangana Today reported. It has also forecast thunderstorms, lightning, squalls till May 31 and has issued a yellow alert for the state.

Earliest onset in 10 years

The arrival of monsoon on Monday marks the earliest in Telangana over the last 10 years. In comparison, it arrived on June 3 last year and on June 5 in 2023. "This shift comes as part of a larger trend, with the monsoon hitting Kerala on May 24, a week in advance than its usual date of June 1. In fact, it was scheduled to enter Kerala on May 27, but it arrived three days before," The Times of India quoted A Sravani, scientist at IMD Hyderabad, as saying.

What’s behind the early arrival?

Experts say the early onset is due to stronger-than-usual cross-equatorial winds and increased moisture from the Bay of Bengal. "Normally, the monsoon moves over the South Andaman Sea by May 15, heads toward Sri Lanka by May 22, and reaches the Myanmar coast around May 26 before arriving in Kerala around June 1. But this year, the system has been accelerated," said AVM Sharma, meteorologist with Skymet, told TOI.

The monsoon is expected to cover all of Telangana by June 1.

With intense pre-monsoon showers already crossing 100 mm in some areas of Telangana this May, meteorologists predict a strong monsoon season for the state. Rainfall is expected to cross 1,000 mm, well above the seasonal average of 919 mm. In 2024, Telangana recorded 962.6 mm, which was 86.5 per cent of the normal, TOI reported.

"Telangana, where the normal onset of monsoon is June 8 and withdrawal is around October 14, receives about 80% of its annual rainfall during the southwest monsoon season. One of the major reasons for early arrival is also good showers in May. We had one of the wettest May in the last five years, trailing only to 2023, when over 120 mm of rainfall was received in May alone. This year the summer rain is transitioning well into monsoon," TOI quoted YV Rama of the Telangana Development Planning Society (TGDPS) as saying.