Monsoon covers entire India 9 days early; red alert issued in several states

The monsoon covered the entire country on Sunday (June 29), nine days before the usual date of July 8, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

According to IMD data, this is the earliest the monsoon has covered the entire country since 2020, when it did so by June 26.

Also read: Heavy rain lashes Kerala; orange alert in five districts

Also, on Sunday, the monsoon covered Delhi two days after the normal date of June 27.

The IMD has issued a red alert for heavy rainfall on June 29 and 30 in various districts of Uttarakhand. A similar red alert of heavy to very heavy rain has been issued for 12 districts in Himachal Pradesh. Also, a red alert is issued predicting extremely heavy rainfall in parts of Jharkhand till July 1.

Heavy to very heavy rain likely to continue

"The monsoon has further advanced into remaining parts of Rajasthan, west Uttar Pradesh and Haryana and entire Delhi today, June 29 2025," the IMD said in a statement.

Also read: Sikkim: 28 people airlifted from landslide-hit Chaten

It said that heavy to very heavy rain is likely to continue in many parts of northwest, central, east and northeast India over the next seven days.

Extremely heavy rain may occur in some areas of Jharkhand on June 29 and 30 and in Odisha on June 29, the weather department added.

Monsoon advances rapidly

The rain-bearing system usually makes its onset over Kerala by June 1 and covers the entire country by July 8. It starts retreating from northwest India around September 17 and withdraws completely by October 15.

Also read: Uttarkashi: 2 workers killed, 7 missing after cloudburst sparks landslide

This year, the monsoon reached Kerala on May 24, its earliest onset over the Indian mainland since 2009, when it arrived on May 23.

Supported by strong low-pressure systems over the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, the monsoon advanced rapidly over the next few days, covering areas up to central Maharashtra, including Mumbai and the entire northeast by May 29.

However, this was followed by a prolonged stagnation of around 18 days, from May 29 to June 16.

Delayed in Delhi

Though it gradually covered the remaining parts of the country in the days that followed, its arrival in Delhi and adjoining areas was delayed due to anti-cyclonic winds over the region that hindered the flow of monsoon currents.

The monsoon reached Delhi on June 28 last year, June 25 in 2023, June 30 in 2022, July 13 in 2021 and June 25 in 2020. The system covered the entire country by July 2 in 2024, 2023 and 2022; July 13 in 2021 and June 26 in 2020.

In May, the IMD had forecast that India is likely to receive 106 per cent of the long-period average rainfall of 87 cm during the June-September monsoon season. Rainfall between 96 and 104 per cent of this 50-year average is considered 'normal'.

Above-normal rainfall expected

Above-normal rainfall is expected in most parts of the country, except Ladakh, adjoining areas of Himachal Pradesh, the northeast and some parts of Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha.

Some isolated areas in Punjab, Haryana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu may record below-normal rainfall. The monsoon is crucial for India's agriculture sector, which supports the livelihood of around 42 per cent of the population and contributes 18.2 per cent to the GDP. It also plays a key role in replenishing reservoirs essential for drinking water and power generation.

Uttarakhand: 2 dead in cloudburst

A cloudburst in Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi district early Sunday left two construction workers dead and seven missing.

The IMD has issued a red alert for heavy rainfall on June 29 and 30 in various districts of Uttarakhand, including Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag, Dehradun, Tehri, Pauri, Haridwar and Nainital. Authorities have put the Chardham yatra on hold for a day for the safety of pilgrims.

A landslide triggered by a cloudburst destroyed the shelters of workers engaged in the construction of a hotel along the Yamunotri National Highway in Uttarkashi district, officials said.

There were 29 labourers at the campsite when the landslide occurred, washing away around 10 metres of the highway. Twenty of them were evacuated to safety while nine went missing, the district emergency operation centre said.

The bodies of two missing labourers were recovered from the banks of the Yamuna River near Tiladi Shaheed Smarak, about 18 km from the place where the landslide occurred, police said.

The labourers are said to be of Nepalese origin.

Jharkhand: Trapped students rescued

At least 162 students trapped in an inundated private residential school in Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district after heavy rain were rescued by the police on Sunday, a senior officer said.

The students were trapped in the school located at Pandarsoli on the Haldipokhar-Kowali Road in Kowali police station area since Saturday night, after the premises got flooded due to heavy rain.

He said boats were used for the rescue operation while the NDRF was requisitioned.

Meanwhile, the district administrations of East Singhbhum and Seraikela-Kharsawan sounded an alert in view of the possibility of a sudden increase in water level in rivers Kharkhai and Subarnarekha, besides the release of water from Rairangpur dam in Odisha.

On June 30, an 'orange alert' has been issued for Khunti, Ranchi, Ramgarh, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Seraikela-Kharswan and West Singhbhum, and it has been issued for Gumla, Garhwa, Palamu, Chatra, Latehar and Lohardaga on July 1.

Jharkhand has recorded 80 per cent surplus rainfall from June 1 to June 28.

The state received 306.5 mm of rainfall against the normal rainfall of 170.3 mm between June 1 and June 28.

Heavy rainfall in Punjab and Haryana

Several parts of Punjab and Haryana received heavy rainfall on Sunday while their common capital Chandigarh also witnessed a heavy downpour.

According to the Met department, Chandigarh received 119.5 mm of rain in the last 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Sunday.

Among other places in Punjab, rain lashed in Ferozepur, Mohali, Ludhiana, Patiala, Pathankot, Rupnagar.

In Haryana, Ambala recorded 91 mm of rain as Rohtak, Gurugram, Kaithal, Nuh and Panchkula also received rain.

Temperatures dropped by a few notches after rain in the region.

According to the Met forecast, light to moderate rain is likely at most places on June 30 and July 1 in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

"The spell is likely to be accompanied with thunderstorm/ lightning at isolated places during the period over Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh.

Heavy rainfall is very likely at isolated places over northern, eastern parts of Punjab and Haryana including Chandigarh during this spell.

Very heavy rain is also likely during June 29 to July 1 over parts--Yamunanagar, Ambala, Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Karnal, Patiala, Sangrur districts and adjoining areas," as per the forecast.

Northeast: Railway link restored

The railway link to Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram and southern Assam was partially restored on Sunday, six days after it was snapped due to landslides in the Lumding-Badarpur hill section of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), officials said.

Limited train operations are being allowed for the time being, with normalisation of movement expected by Monday, they said.

"The first goods train and first passenger train (Kanchenjunga Express) crossed the landslide-affected location at Jatinga Lampur after restoration," an NFR spokesperson said.

Himachal Pradesh: Shimla-Kalka rail line shut

Services on the Shimla-Kalka rail line were suspended on Sunday after boulders and trees fell on the tracks following overnight rains in Himachal Pradesh's Solan district, while a landslide on the national highway disrupted traffic for hours.

A bridge in Solan’s Barotiwala industrial area was washed away.

A landslide near Koti on the Shimla-Kalka National Highway (NH-5), connecting Shimla and Chandigarh, damaged some stretches of the road, resulting in a two to three-km-long traffic jam for hours.

Solan Superintendent of Police (SP) Gaurav Singh on Sunday said two-way traffic has been restored near Chakki mod on NH 5, which was damaged due to landslides and police teams facilitating traffic movement.

An alternative route via Jangeshu road is also closed due to fallen debris, which is being cleared, the SP said, adding that the traffic from Kasauli towards Chandigarh will be diverted via Jangeshu once it gets cleared.

The train service on the Shimla-Kalka railway line – a UNESCO world heritage – was disrupted on Sunday as boulders and trees fell on the track near Solan’s Koti area after heavy rain.

The repair work is underway, officials said.

The first train arriving in the morning is stuck at Koti railway station, while other trains have been halted at Gumman and Kalka.

Videos of passengers, waiting for hours, expressing their anger, are also surfacing online.

The local met office has issued an orange warning of heavy to very heavy rains in isolated areas of the state on Monday and predicted a wet spell in the state till July 5.

It also cautioned of moderate to high flash floods risk in parts of 10 districts – Bilapsur, Chamba, Hamirpur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Solan, Sirmaur and Una – till Monday.

Rain-related incidents have claimed 17 lives in Himachal Pradesh since the onset of monsoon in the state on June 20, while four persons are missing, according to the state emergency operation centre.

Kerala: Mullaperiyar Dam shutters opened

Authorities opened 13 shutters of the Mullaperiyar Dam on Sunday, releasing water into the Periyar River as the water level neared full capacity.

Each shutter was raised by 10 centimetres, and around 250 cusecs of water per second is now flowing out, according to information provided by the Tamil Nadu Water Resources Department to the Kerala authorities.

The shutters were opened at 11.35 am after the water level in the 128-year-old dam crossed 136 feet.

The water level rose due to the heavy rainfall in the dam's catchment areas over the past few days.

The move follows days of preparation by the Idukki district administration after Tamil Nadu, which operates the dam, indicated it might open the gates once the water level reached 136 feet.

Earlier, authorities had placed villages including Periyar, Manjumala, Upputhura, Elappara, Ayyappankovil, Kanchiyar, Aanavilasam, and Udumbanchola on high alert.

More than 20 relief camps have been set up, and local police and revenue officials have been instructed to assist with any necessary relocations.

Though the Mullaperiyar Dam is located in Kerala, Tamil Nadu operates it under a 999-year lease agreement signed in 1886.

The issue has long been a source of tension between the two states, with Kerala raising safety concerns due to the age of the dam, while Tamil Nadu maintains that it is crucial for supplying water to its farmlands.

Odisha

In Odisha, with an impending flood threat looming over the northern part of the state, the state government has placed the Balasore district administration on high alert, as several major rivers in the region continue to swell.

Heavy rainfall over two days has already left most of Mayurbhanj waterlogged.

The Budhabalang, Subarnarekha, Jalaka, and Sono are witnessing rising water levels and may cause flooding by Monday. To oversee the situation on the ground and assist in flood management, an engineer-in-chief and a chief engineer have been deployed in Balasore.

To mitigate the flood situation, the State Flood Cell in the Department of Water Resources is working round-the-clock.

To make matters worse, a fresh low-pressure area has formed over Northwest Bay of Bengal and adjoining West Bengal and Bangladesh coasts, under which northern Odisha is likely to received heavy rainfall, the IMD said in a bulletin on Sunday.

The IMD has forecast isolated heavy rainfall in Odisha from June 29 to July 4.

(With agency inputs)