Monsoon not before June 10,says Met dept

The maximum temperature over Bharuch,Narmada and Surat districts is expected at about 37-40 degree Celsius,with Surat slightly lower at about 35 C but higher humidity,perhaps due to high and consistent cloud cover. The other two districts are likely to have clear skies except on Thursday,but banana farmers in the region have been asked to beware of cigatago spots developing on the leaf,while cotton farms with irrigation facilities are advised to prepare for sowing.

The central Gujarat districts of Anand,Kheda,Vadodara,Panchmahals and Dahod may experience maximum temperatures of 41 degree Celsius,yet have cloud covers of up to six okta (up to three-fourths of the sky may have clouds) with moderate breeze of up to 22 km per hour. No rain is predicted,and farmers have been asked to plough their fields and prepare to sow the kharif crop.

The north Gujarat districts of Banaskantha,Patan,Mehsana,Sabarkantha and Gandhinagar are expected to experience maximum temperatures of up to 40 C,moderate breeze and little cloud cover although the latter three may have light,scattered rainfall and farmers there should generally postpone harvesting and sowing. Farmers from Banaskantha and Patan are however advised to harvest ripe pearl millets,sorghum,groundnuts,vegetables and fruits and begin sowing hybrid or Bt cotton.

The Kutch district is expected to have high humidity levels of up to 80 per cent,with maximum temperatures reaching 39 C. There would be some cloud cover but no rains although a moderate breeze is expected. Farmers have been advised to harvest mature summer crops.

In Saurashtra,districts such as Jamnagar,Surendranagar,Rajkot and Amreli are expected to experience maximum temperatures of up to 40 C with humidity as high as 90 per cent in some areas. A moderate breeze would prevail,and cloud cover sparse throughout the region. Farmers have been asked to complete pre-monsoon sowing of cotton and prepare crop inventories.

Porbandar and Junagadh districts,on the other hand,are expected to have low maximum temperatures of about 34 C to 37 C,even as humidity will soar to 85 per cent coupled with a fresh breeze with speeds of up to 30 km/h. Farmers are advised to plan to sow kharif crops,and mature mangoes and pearl millets are to be harvested.

In Ahmedabad and Bhavnagar districts,maximum temperatures may soar to 42 C with clear skies and gentle breeze. Humidity may not be too high at roughly 70 per cent,and farmers have been asked to prepare for the rain by cleaning farm ponds for water-harvesting.