Southwest monsoon finally may retreat from next week: Met Official

The retreat of the southwest monsoon might be delayed this year, for the third year in the row, because of a lot of moisture in the air in west Rajasthan, where the withdrawal begins, said Met official. A fresh low-pressure area is developing over the Bay of Bengal. This might also cause rain over north India, if its moves along the monsoon trough. “At least for the next 3-4 days, the monsoon withdrawal might not start from the western part of Rajasthan, as there is considerable moisture in the atmosphere there, though it might not be raining. Also, there is a possibility of rain in the north,” said D S Pai, director of long-range forecast, India Meteorological Department (IMD). He said though the delay might be beneficial for the coming rabi sowing season, as the soil would retain the moisture, more rain over north India in the next few days might adversely affect the standing kharif crop, which is ready to be harvested.