PANAJI
Already set in over Kerala, the Southwest Monsoon is expected to arrive in Goa within this week, most likely after five days.
IMD forecast said the monsoon conditions are less likely to set over Goa in 3 to 4 days.
Over the last 10 years the time taken for the monsoon to reach Goa from Kerala has varied between one and 12 days.
Meanwhile, the Southwest Monsoon has set over Kerala on Sunday, three days ahead of its usual date of June 1, marking the start of the four-month rainy season that is crucial for India's farm-based economy.
Kerala has been receiving rainfall since Saturday and 10 out of the 14 weather monitoring stations in the State have received more than 2.5 mm rains, thus fulfilling the criteria for the onset of monsoon, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
Southwest monsoon has set in over Kerala on Sunday, May 29, against the normal date of onset of June 1, IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said.
However, while the monsoon has advanced over Kerala and parts of Tamil Nadu, the Bay of Bengal arm of the weather system was sluggish as it continued to linger just above the Andaman islands.
The Extended Range Forecast issued by the IMD has suggested that the progress of the monsoon over Karnataka and entire north-east India could be slow.
Earlier, the IMD had forecast onset over Kerala on May 27 with help from the remnants of Cyclone Asani, which struck the Bay of Bengal a fortnight ago. The forecast had a model error of four days.
