India's monsoon lashes Mumbai as rains arrive early

MUMBAI — Lashing rains swamped India's financial capital Mumbai on Monday as the annual monsoon arrived two weeks earlier than usual, according to weather forecasters.

Heavy rains cooling temperatures, welcomed by farmers for their crops but causing havoc each year in cities by flooding the transport infrastructure, are normally expected in the southwestern state of Maharashtra in early June.

The Indian Meteorological Department, or IMD, warned of "extremely heavy rainfall" in Mumbai and the city authorities said a red alert had been issued until Tuesday.