Southwest monsoon returns to ‘limping phase’

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After promising to wipe off the early deficit, the intensity of the southwest monsoon has fallen as dramatically as it had soared in the last days of June.

A rain shortage that was as alarming as 50 percent till June 20 was surprisingly made up in the next ten days.

However, after an intense spell of four days, which included a record surge on June 27, the showers have dried up. As on July 3, the deficit has inched back to nearly 25 percent.

A week ago it was nearly zero. The intense spell lasted from June 17 to June 28. The forecast for the next week does not look promising either. “There will be scattered rains, not the kind we experienced during the last days of June,” a top IMD official said.

Once again, in meteorological jargon, the state has entered a “limping phase”. Once again, fears of a weak monsoon are looming large. The behaviour of the southwest monsoon, experts say, is a cause for concern.

The three-month phenomenon is most intense during the 15-odd days between June 26 and July 11. “It looks as if the most productive phase of the monsoon will be weak this year,” the official said.

Offering more cause for concern, daily power consumption has soared. Daily consumption that hovered around 50 million units has shot up to over 60 MU in the last four days. Hydel generation too has gone up, from below 20 MU to 28 MU.