Many regions in northwest India, including Delhi, are experiencing above-normal day and night temperatures following the withdrawal of the monsoon. These conditions are expected to persist for at least another week, after which a slight dip in temperatures is anticipated. “This is a transition period. There are no clouds, and the sun is shining directly. Cold northerly winds haven't entered the region yet, which is why it's hot in some parts of northwest India. However, after a week, we expect a gradual decline in temperatures,” said M. Mohapatra, director general of the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
On Saturday, Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 36.5°C, which is 2°C above normal, and a minimum temperature of 24.8°C, which is 3°C above normal. IMD officials mentioned that temperatures during Navratri and the days following it are also expected to remain above normal.
However, the complete withdrawal of the monsoon will take time, according to the IMD. Although the monsoon season officially ended on September 30, the monsoon usually withdraws from the country around October 15. Currently, the withdrawal line passes through Nautanwa, Sultanpur, Panna, Narmadapuram, Khargaon, Nandurbar, and Navsari. Conditions are favorable for the further withdrawal of the monsoon from the remaining parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and some more parts of Maharashtra over the next 2-3 days.
“We are still recording heavy rainfall in parts of peninsular India, and rain will continue over northeast India as well, so the withdrawal will take some time,” Mohapatra added. An upper-air cyclonic circulation is present over the southwest and adjacent west-central Bay of Bengal, off the coasts of North Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Pradesh, at lower and middle tropospheric levels.
“Heavy to very heavy rainfall (6.5 to 20.5 cm) is very likely over North Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karaikal until Monday, and over Kerala during the next 5 days,” IMD said. The monsoon withdrawal will continue into the second week of October and is expected to be complete by October 10-16. Once the southwest monsoon withdraws, the Northeast Monsoon is likely to set in around October 15, according to the IMD’s extended-range forecast issued on Friday.
