Rains Hit Mumbai!

Yes! Monsoon is in Mumbai! Maybe the exact date was not met! But it had been lashing the city since June 11. And, major downpours happened on June 14 and June 16.

The moment you started enjoying the black sky, the rain drops, the drenched street and alleys, the dramatic change in climate, the windy wavy beaches and seasides...well, the related problems also surfaced. Water logging, traffic jams, local train delays, chaos in airports and so on. Yesterday, it was all in one day. Heavy rains since dawn and the high tides later on. And, the forecasts of more rains and high tides for next twenty four hours. But as always, monsoon does not need forecasts to unfold its fury...today being a day of clearing sky and interludes of sunshine.

At the moment lets look at the positive side. Rains are needed for all the good reasons. So enjoy! Monsoon is here to stay for next four months.

Good News Monsoon Rains!

The moment I completed my last post it did rain in Mumbai! Maybe light, but it did hit several parts of the city.

And today it rained more! Just now, about to be midnight, it was good rains for few minutes! The clouds look real today--the monsoon type, you know, call it pre-monsoon.

And the good news! The South West Monsoon finally moved out of Kerala and reached Goa. Now, it's set to hit Maharashtra in two days. Means Mumbai is about to welcome the monsoon.

The forecast is good too. The monsoon is expected to deliver 97% rains this season.

Lets hope for the best and celebrate!

O' Monsoon! Thy Phet?

South West Monsoon seems to have developed a fatal attraction for Keralian hospitality. It arrived there in May 30 and stayed put there. This time thanks to Phet--a cyclonic upheaval in the Arabian sea. Or has it been Indian Monsoon's 'fate' as usual?

Same old story like in 2009. Last it was aila cyclone in the Bay of Bengal plus a suspected El Nino conspiracy.

This year the heat is more persistent with mercury hovering over 45 in the state of Maharashtra and other parts of the country. Water scarcity and even drought like situations developing in many parts. Remaining water levels are at the lowest--be it the city of Mumbai or the villages. If the monsoon is delayed further...well, let's not think about it.

Phet had come and spent itself, but the South West Monsoon is yet to be active and moving. The expected date of 5th June in Mumbai is gone. Now it is expected by 10th, but before that the monsoon has to reach Goa.

O' Monsoon please pour soon! Maybe independent India's dependence on you has made you precious and slippery. But at least have mercy on the Indian hapless farmers looking at the sky and praying continuously.