PUNE: Monsoon is poised to resume its northward march after a 13-day pause since May 29, both IMD and private forecaster Skymet Weather Services said on Tuesday.Currently anchored over Mumbai in the west and Sikkim-Sub Himalayan West Bengal in the east, the monsoon stream is expected to gain momentum due to the weather systems over the Bay of Bengal. Skymet president GP Sharma said two successive monsoon systems (one of which is likely to form later) over the Bay of Bengal, may revitalise rainfall in regions where the monsoon has already arrived and push it into new areas. An IMD official corroborated the projections, and said favourable conditions could see the monsoon progressing over parts of central and east India around June 14. However, the official cautioned that confirmation of the second Bay of Bengal system was still pending.Sharma said: “A cyclonic circulation has formed over west-central Bay of Bengal, and may bring rain to coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema and Karnataka. By the weekend, heavy showers are likely to reach Konkan and Goa.”He added that another cyclonic circulation was expected over north Bay of Bengal on June 14, which will traverse Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, driving the monsoon’s advance. “The combined impact of these systems is expected to reinvigorate the monsoon in areas where it has weakened post-onset and extend its reach to cover the remaining parts of West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and East Madhya Pradesh. Sharma said: “Additionally, the northern limit of the monsoon is expected to expand in the coming days, alleviating the ongoing heatwave in northern India.”IMD in its bulletin on Tuesday said heatwave conditions were reported at most places with isolated severe heatwave over northern parts of Madhya Pradesh. Heatwave conditions were also reported at many places over west Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and southwest UP with isolated severe heatwave conditions over west Rajasthan, Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir. The IMD bulletin stated that gradual respite from the heatwave conditions over northwest India likely from June 13. An IMD official said: “There is a cyclonic circulation positioned over north Odisha and its surrounding areas that is strengthening monsoon winds. From June 12, we expect decent rainfall activity in South Maharashtra and later in other areas in the state. Kerala and Karnataka are already experiencing a strengthening monsoon with a forecast of light to moderate rainfall at most or many places in the next few days.” Monsoon has not progressed since May 29. The official said: “On June 10 too, there was no further advancement. It should start progressing again by June 14. Further progression of the monsoon will result from the westward movement of the existing weather system along the Odisha coast,” he said. Another IMD official said the Bay of Bengal cyclonic circulation was expected to move westward, which might lead to significant rainfall and support monsoon progression in parts of central and east India. “An east-west trough from north Tamil Nadu to the south Maharashtra coast, forming a shear zone roughly along latitude 15°N over the Indian region, is also an indicator of monsoon revival. This will strengthen monsoon winds and facilitate the northward progress of rainfall in the coming days.“
