India, June 6 -- Following a spell of thunderstorms and showers in New Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) last week, hopes have risen for the onset of the southwest monsoon in the region to provide relief from the heat. The monsoon arrived in Kerala on June 4, five days later than Indian Meteorological Department's (IMD) prediction, followed by its arrival in Maharashtra two days later.

As of now, the southwest monsoon has entered parts of the west-central and east-central Arabian Sea, Karnataka, the entire Goa region, parts of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, most parts of Tamil Nadu, and the southwest Bay of Bengal.

Barring parts of Manipur and Mizoram , monsoon has also extended into areas of the west-central, northeast and n...