The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced the onset of the North-East monsoon over the South Peninsula on Monday morning.
This coincided with the intensification of the existing low-pressure area in the South Bay of Bengal.
It now lies as a “well marked low-pressure area” over South-West Bay of Bengal, off the North Tamil Nadu–South Andhra Pradesh coasts.
This is now expected to churn further into a tropical storm (monsoon depression), a successor to Cyclone Phailin, by tomorrow.
This would further escalate rain over Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and parts of Andhra Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the South-West monsoon has completed withdrawing from the remaining parts of the country, the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, the IMD said.
North-East monsoon rains have commenced as if on cue over Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the adjoining areas of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.