Monsoon rains arrive in Kerala coast, North East

Monsoon rains arrived in India's southern Kerala coast on Tuesday in line with forecast, a weather office source told Reuters, brightening the outlook for higher farm output and robust economic growth.

Director General of the India Meteorological Department K J Ramesh told PTI that monsoon has also hit the North East, thanks to Cyclone Mora, which aided the advancement of the seasonal rainfall.

The normal onset date for the monsoon to hit the Kerala coast, which marks its official arrival in the country, is June 1.

"All the required conditions have been met," a weather office source told Reuters. The official announcement is expected shortly.

The India Meteorological Department declares the arrival of monsoon rains only after parameters measuring the consistency of rainfall over a defined geography, intensity, cloudiness and wind speed are satisfied.

(WION with agency inputs)