Mumbai Weather: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced that the southwest monsoon reached Maharashtra on Thursday, providing much-needed respite to the state, which had been grappling with intense heat. The monsoon is expected to advance over Mumbai, the remaining parts of Karnataka, coastal Andhra Pradesh and southern Chhattisgarh in the next three to four days.

According to the IMD, the progress of the monsoon has been nearly normal so far, but it is yet to cover some areas, resulting in continuous high temperatures and heatwave conditions in those regions. "Once the monsoon's northern limit reaches parts of central India next week, it would have covered half the country. Areas covered by the monsoon are unlikely to record heatwave conditions any further. The quantum of rainfall for June remains normal so far," said IMD director general M Mohapatra.

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The northern limit of the monsoon is currently passing through Ratnagiri and Solapur in Maharashtra, Medak in Telangana, Bhadrachalam and Vizianagaram in Andhra Pradesh, and Islampur in West Bengal. The monsoon normally makes an onset over Mumbai around June 10-11 and on Thursday, it advanced into some more parts of the central Arabian Sea, most parts of Karnataka, some more parts of Maharashtra, Telangana, coastal Andhra Pradesh and the west-central and northwest Bay of Bengal.

The IMD has stated that conditions are favourable for the further advance of the southwest monsoon into some more parts of the central Arabian Sea, the remaining parts of Karnataka, coastal Andhra Pradesh, some more parts of Maharashtra (including Mumbai), Telangana, some parts of southern Chhattisgarh and southern Odisha in the next three to four days.

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Meanwhile, the weather body has also predicted rain and thunderstorms over northwest India until Friday. However, heatwave conditions are likely to persist in isolated pockets over parts of east India, Uttar Pradesh, and north Madhya Pradesh in the next five days.

Mahesh Palawat, the vice president of climate and meteorology at Skymet Weather, stated that the monsoon progression has been near normal so far, but rains have reduced over Peninsular India. He also added that it is difficult to say immediately if the monsoon will advance on time over northwest India, which is affected by high temperatures.