New Delhi, May 16 -- As scorching summer heat grips India, a welcome relief emerges on the horizon: the southwest monsoon has made its earliest entrance in seven years, arriving over parts of the Andaman Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the Nicobar Islands.

India's official weather agency, the India Meteorological Department (IMD), predicts that monsoon will reach India's mainland by 27 May, five days ahead of the normal 1 June onset date.

Also read: Southwest monsoon rolls into Andaman and Nicobar region, two days in advance

According to IMD's 1961-2019 data, monsoons typically emerge on the Kerala coast around 1 June (with a standard deviation of about 7 days), making it the official onset date. From this point, the monsoon expands to cov...