Monsoon reaches Himachal Pradesh, parts of Punjab & Haryana almost a fortnight early

CHANDIGARH/SHIMLA: Southwest monsoon completely hit Himachal Pradesh on Sunday and many parts of Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh, almost a fortnight ahead of its normal arrival. Conditions are favourable for the advancement of the monsoon in the remaining parts of Punjab and Haryana in the next two days, according to Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
In Himachal, all parts of the state received light to moderate rainfall during the last 24 hours.This year, the monsoon arrived 13 days in advance while last year it had arrived in the state on June 24. The normal date of monsoon arrival in Himachal is June 26. The earliest monsoon has arrived in Himachal Pradesh was on June 9 in 2000the most delayed on set was in 2010 (July 5).
The monsoon’s normal date of arrival in Punjab generally remains June 28. In 2013, the monsoon arrived in the region on June16.Theearliestonsetof monsoon in Punjab was in 2008 (June 13) and the most delayed onset was in 1987 (July 27). Last year, the monsoon reached northern parts of Punjab on June 24 and covered the entire state on June 26. Whereas, in 2019, the monsoon reached Punjab on July 5.
The IMD has predicted light to moderate rain or thundershowers in most parts of Punjab, Haryana and the UT on June14 and15 and heavy rain at isolated places. However, thunderstorms or lightning accompanied with gusty winds(speed 40-50 km per hour) are likely at isolated places on June 15, 16 and17. According to the meteorological department, Chandigarh recorded 20.6 mm rainfall between 5.30 pm on Saturday and 8.30 am on Sunday. In Punjab, Bathinda received 49.4 mm rainfall, Faridkot (24.4 mm), Hoshiarpur (23mm),Adampur (17.2 mm),Muktsar(51 mm),Balachaur (19.1 mm),Rajpura(57.6 mm),Ludhiana(15 mm) and Jalandhar (10 mm). In Haryana, Sirsa received 101.4 mm rainfall, Dabwali (62 mm), Ratia (52 mm),Narwana(32 mm),Ambala (28.6 mm), Hansi (20 mm), Jhajjar (19 mm), Narnaul (16 mm) and Rohtak (14.8 mm).
In Himachal, during the last 24 hours, Kandaghat in Solan recorded 51.6mm rainfall, Shahpur in Kangra (36.5 mm), Dalhousie in Chamba (28 mm) and Una recorded 22 mm.