Chandigarh: Pre-monsoon activity gathered pace in Punjab after overnight rainfall cooled parts of Pathankot, while the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast scattered showers across several districts over the coming days. Although no formal weather warning has been issued for Monday, changing atmospheric conditions indicate that the southwest monsoon is steadily moving closer to the state.
According to weather officials, cloudy skies and intermittent rainfall are likely in districts including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Sangrur, Patiala, Mohali, Rupnagar, Fatehgarh Sahib and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar. The rainfall is expected to remain light to moderate, offering only temporary respite from the prevailing heat.
Meteorologists said the monsoon has advanced into central India and is expected to progress through northern states over the next few days before reaching Punjab around July 3. The slight delay means residents may continue to experience humid conditions until the monsoon becomes fully active.
Despite occasional cloud cover, temperatures across Punjab remain significantly above seasonal averages. Daytime temperatures continue to hover around the 40-degree Celsius mark in many places, while night temperatures have remained close to 30 degrees Celsius, leaving little relief after sunset. Faridkot remained among the hottest locations in the state, recording one of the highest maximum temperatures.
Chandigarh also witnessed another hot and humid day, with partly cloudy skies providing little comfort. Weather experts expect similar conditions to persist through the end of June, with only isolated spells of drizzle or thunderstorms in some areas.
Officials believe the weather pattern will begin changing from the start of July as moisture-laden winds from the Bay of Bengal strengthen over north India. The interaction between these winds and an approaching western disturbance is likely to trigger widespread rainfall across Punjab.
The Meteorological Department has already indicated the possibility of thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds reaching speeds of 40 to 50 kmph around July 1 and 2, with rainfall activity expected to increase thereafter. Once the monsoon enters the state, temperatures are likely to fall by 3 to 5 degrees Celsius, bringing much-needed relief from the prolonged spell of heat and humidity.
Agriculture experts also expect the onset of the monsoon to benefit paddy transplantation across Punjab, particularly in the Malwa and Doaba regions, where farmers have been waiting for sustained rainfall to support field operations.
