India is likely to get normal monsoon rains this year, bringing relief to large parts of the country that are in the grip of drought, D. Sivananda Pai, head of long-range monsoon forecasting at India’s Meteorological Department, said Monday.….“So far, there is no worry signal,” Mr. Pai said.
He said there was no threat from El Niño, an abnormal warming of surface ocean waters, which disrupted the distribution of last year’s monsoon rainfall.
India received scanty rains in the first half of the June-September monsoon season, but rains picked up from late August. Still, large parts of west and south India received little rainfall throughout the season. Maharashtra, an important crop-growing state, is now entering its third season of drought after a dry winter.The monsoon season accounts for 70% of the country’s total rainfall. It is critical as 60% of farmlands are rain-dependent. Cultivation of most food crops happens during the monsoon season.
The rainy season also has a strong bearing on the overall health of India’s economy as more than half of the country’s workforce is employed in agriculture.