Kerala monsoon magic: First photos capture nature's splendor

Marking the beginning of the four-month rainy season in the country, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Thursday announced the arrival of Monsoon simultaneously over Kerala and northeast India.

The Monsoon hit the country's mainland two days in advance against its normal date of onset over Kerala on June 1.

Southwest monsoon normally sets in over Kerala on June 1 with a standard deviation of about seven days. It normally arrives in the northeast a couple of days later and covers most of the northeastern states by June 5.

The Met department claimed that its operational forecasts of the date of Monsoon onset over Kerala during the past 19 years (2005-2023) were proved to be correct except in 2015.

Heavy rain continued in various parts of Kerala, especially Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, on Wednesday, as people struggled with flooding and disrupted traffic.

IMD has warned of widespread rainfall till June 2; NHRC asks Kochi corporation to address waterlogging within 8 weeks.

Strong westerly winds will continue along Kerala’s coast and under its influence, there will be widespread rain accompanied by lightning, thunderstorm and gusty winds (30-40km/hr) from June 1-4.

All districts — except Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod—are on yellow alert on Thursday.

Incessant rains continued to pummel Kochi for a second day, causing widespread waterlogging and bringing traffic to a standstill for nearly five hours on Wednesday.

Motorists faced a nightmare commute home, particularly on the Edappally-Aroor highway and arterial roads around Palarivattom, where vehicles were gridlocked for hours due to the heavy rain and resulting waterlogging on Wednesday.