India Met Department (IMD) has declared that 'active' to 'vigorous' monsoon conditions would likely prevail over the West Coast from Saturday leading to persistent very heavy rainfall.

'Active' monsoon refers to conditions when recorded rainfall amounts range from one-and-a-half times to four times the normal. Anything above this range represents 'vigorous' monsoon.

CRUCIAL FEATURES

The IMD also said that scattered to fairly widespread rainfall would be experienced over major parts of the country during this period except over parts of Rajasthan and North Gujarat.

Crucial atmospheric features to support this expansive phase of the monsoon from this weekend is taking up their positions one by one.

These include an offshore trough, truncated though, in its present alignment from South Maharashtra to North Kerala as of this morning.

Full-blown monsoon conditions see the offshore trough, receptacle of incoming monsoon, extend all the from the South Gujarat coast down to South Kerala.

'LOW' ANTICIPATED

Other supportive features include a circulation over South Madhya Maharashtra and adjoining South Konkan and the East-West shear zone of monsoon turbulence across South Peninsular India.

Another circulation over the northern parts of West-Central Bay of Bengal has shifted base to northern parts of Central Bay of Bengal and adjoining North Bay of Bengal.

This is where a low-pressure area is likely to develop in two days, which would literally carry the monsoon on its shoulders and also nudge the West Coast to get into the act.

The monsoon has advanced into some more parts of South Interior Karnataka, most parts of Rayalaseema, South Coastal Andhra Pradesh this morning, the IMD said.

Its northern limit passes through Shirali, Chitradurga, Kurnool, Narsapur, Machlipatnam, Agartala, Lumding and North Lakhimpur.

FURTHER ADVANCE

Conditions are favourable for its advance into some more parts of some parts of South Konkan, Goa, remaining Karnataka and Rayalaseema, some parts of Telangana, some more parts of Coastal Andhra Pradesh by tomorrow. This would signal the beginning of its anticipated expansive phase.

Conditions are very likely to become favourable for its advance into some more parts of Maharashtra, Telangana and coastal Andhra Pradesh during the subsequent two days.

During Saturday to Monday, it would cover the remaining parts of Maharashtra and enter some parts of Gujarat, southern parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal, Sikkim, and the remaining parts of North-Eastern States, the IMD said.

Rain/thundershowers lashed many places over Jammu & Kashmir and Andaman & Nicobar Islands and at a few places over Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry until this morning.

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