Weather conditions are set to turn favourable in the northeast for the monsoon to set in. The three-month pre-monsoon season did not experience much rainfall this year.
In the northeast, the normal date of the arrival of the rainy season is June 5. After the rains hit the Kerala coast, within a couple of days, the rains may arrive in the northeast. We are keeping a close watch on the movement of the clouds, said a senior official of the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
In the run-up to the monsoon, the region usually experiences thunderstorms, but this year there was less of this activity. Except Meghalaya, which received normal rainfall since March 1, six other northeast states recorded deficit rainfall. With a maximum shortfall of 67% and 60%, rainfall has been largely deficit in Mizoram and Tripura respectively. Meghalaya, despite receiving 8% less rainfall than normal, was categorized in the normal range as the deficit was not that low. In Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, there was 41% and 27% deficit rainfall, whereas in Manipur, the shortfall was 37%. Nagaland had 44% deficit rainfall.