The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday announced that the southwest monsoon has officially set in over Kerala, marking the earliest onset since 2009 when it arrived on May 23. The onset is eight days ahead of its usual onset date of June 1, the weather office said.

“Southwest Monsoon has set in over Kerala today, the 24th May, 2025, against the normal date of 1st June. Thus, southwest monsoon has set in over Kerala 8 days before the normal date. This is the earliest date of monsoon onset over Kerala after the year 2009, when it was set in over Kerala on 23rd May 2009,” the IMD said in an official announcement on X.

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Last year, the Southwest Monsoon had arrived over the Kerala coast on May 30, while in 2023 it set in over on June 8.

According to IMD data from 2009 to 2024, the arrival of monsoon has ranged from MAY 29 to June 8. In the last 16 years, there has been only one instance – in 2009 – when the onset occurred earlier than this year.

Earlier, the IMD had predicted the monsoon arrival in Kerala on May 27. The early arrival of monsoon is seen as a signal to a robust start to the rainy season, which is crucial for the country’s agriculture sector.

In another related forecast, the IMD has warned of extremely heavy rainfall at isolated places over Konkan & Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, Coastal Karnataka and South Interior Karnataka, Kerala on May 24.