The south-western monsoon finally reached Punjab and Haryana on July 1, bringing moderate to heavy rains across many parts of North-West India after a delay of several days. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a yellow alert for fairly widespread heavy rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds reaching speeds up to 60 kmph, expected to continue until July 7. Maximum temperatures are forecast to drop by up to five degrees Celsius over the next two days, with no significant change thereafter.
Rainfall and Temperature Outlook
According to the IMD, the monsoon normally enters eastern Himachal Pradesh on June 20 and moves into Punjab between June 25-30, covering the entire state by July 5. This year, the arrival was delayed, but the weather department now predicts widespread rain across Punjab and Haryana. In addition, fairly widespread to widespread rainfall, along with isolated thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds, is expected over Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Uttarakhand until July 7.
Over the past 24 hours, moderate to heavy rains, thunderstorms, and gusty winds occurred at some places in Punjab, though warm night conditions were reported at isolated locations. In Haryana, light to moderate rain was experienced in some parts, while heat wave conditions prevailed at isolated places, according to the IMD bulletin issued on July 1. Rain on July 1 provided much-needed relief from the above-normal day and night temperatures that had been affecting these states.
Seasonal Rainfall Deficit
Despite the recent rains, the seasonal rainfall from June 1 to July 1 is deficient by 47 per cent in both Punjab and Haryana, as per IMD data. Several districts in Haryana, including Yamunanagar, Karnal, Panipat, Sonepat, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Gurugram, and Nuh, received varying amounts of rain over the past 24 hours. In Punjab, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, and Ropar districts experienced rainfall.
The IMD stated that the monsoon has further advanced into some more parts of the North Arabian Sea, Gujarat, entire Daman and Diu, some more parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, remaining parts of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Ladakh, entire Jammu and Kashmir, and some parts of Haryana and Punjab as of July 1.
Weather Systems and Alerts
Even as the monsoon has entered, a fresh Western Disturbance is prevailing at an altitude of 5.8 km above western Afghanistan, and an upper air cyclonic circulation lies over Punjab and its neighbourhood at an altitude of 1.5 km. These systems are contributing to the ongoing rainfall activity. The IMD has predicted fairly widespread to widespread rainfall along with isolated thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds reaching speeds up to 60 kmph over Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Uttarakhand till July 7.
The yellow alert issued for Punjab and Haryana indicates that residents should be prepared for heavy rain, potential waterlogging, and disruption to daily life. The temperature drop of up to five degrees Celsius is expected to bring relief from the heat, but the deficient seasonal rainfall remains a concern for agriculture and water resources in the region.
