India's pre-monsoon and monsoon weather split sharply down the middle on Monday — heavy rainfall and lightning fatalities in the north and east, even as heatwave conditions gripped six states simultaneously. At least 13 people were killed in lightning strikes across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh.

The southwest monsoon, which had advanced into Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat on June 24, has since stalled over both states. The India Meteorological Department said the monsoon has covered 22 states so far and is expected to reach the remaining parts of the country by July 5.

Uttar Pradesh bore a heavy toll. Heavy rain was reported across 15 districts including Lucknow, with weather conditions turning favourable for further monsoon advance. In Mirzapur, an underpass was submerged under nearly three feet of water, disrupting traffic through the day. Five people were killed and two injured in Firozabad district after a tree fell on an e-rickshaw. Separate lightning strikes claimed two more lives in Basti and Maharajganj.

Bihar saw thunderstorms across 15 districts, with lightning strikes killing four people and injuring 24 others in Sitamarhi, Munger, and Patna. The state's weather office has now issued an orange alert for rain across 27 districts, with intermittent showers expected to intensify from Tuesday and heavy rainfall forecast for July 1, particularly in Patna, Nalanda, Arwal, and Jehanabad. Winds of 30-40 kmph are expected during this spell.

In Chhattisgarh, two children and a young man died after being struck by lightning in Surguja district on Monday evening. Madhya Pradesh, meanwhile, recorded rainfall across 12 districts even as weather activity intensified across the central belt.

Assam has been hit hardest by flooding. The Assam State Disaster Management Authority said more than 22,000 people across six districts have been affected, with Dhemaji district worst hit — nearly 16,000 people impacted and 96 villages submerged. Roughly 1,690 hectares of farmland and over 48,000 livestock have also been affected. The overflowing Leku River inundated Assam's Jonai area, submerging National Highway-515. Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu to review the flood situation, as incessant rain also triggered landslides in parts of Arunachal Pradesh.

Even as flooding and lightning deaths mounted in the east, heatwave conditions persisted stubbornly across Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Gujarat. Rohtak in Haryana recorded the country's highest maximum temperature at 43.5°C, followed by Delhi at 43.4°C and Banda in Uttar Pradesh at 43.2°C. Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh touched 41.2°C.

The IMD has forecast heavy rainfall for July 1 over Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Odisha, Kerala, Goa, Tamil Nadu, and the northeastern states, with strong winds of 50-60 kmph expected in Bihar and gusty conditions likely in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, eastern Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu. Orange alerts for heavy rain have been issued for Sikkim, Goa, Telangana, and coastal Karnataka. Heatwave conditions are expected to persist over Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and the Nagpur-Amravati belt of Maharashtra for a fifth consecutive day.