Monsoon rains hit the coast of India’s ​southernmost state of Kerala on ​Thursday, three days later than ‌usual, the weather office said, offering respite from a gruelling heatwave that had raised power demand to a record high.

The June-September monsoon rains, critical for economic growth in Asia’s third-largest economy, usually begin to lash ‌Kerala around June 1 before covering the entire country by mid-July, allowing farmers to plant crops such as rice, corn, cotton, soybeans and sugarcane.

The monsoon is ​essential to India’s nearly $4 trillion economy, delivering almost 70 per cent ‌of the rainfall needed to water farms and ​replenish ‌aquifers and reservoirs.

Last month, the India Meteorological ‌Department forecast an El Nino-weakened monsoon in 2026 that ‌will bring ​the lowest rainfall ​in 11 years, fuelling concerns over crops, food prices and ‌growth.

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