Though June reported a rainfall deficit of 8%, the cumulative rainfall for the month still puts it in the ‘normal’ category as the Met department defines ‘deficient’ only when the deficit is 10% or more below the ‘normal’ figure.
The ongoing sowing of kharif crops has, meanwhile, picked up with the advance of monsoon in the northwest India which may lead to higher than normal acreage this season as the monsoon is expected to cover the entire country by Wednesday – two days ahead of its usual date of July 8. The monsoon had covered the entire country last year on July 13 – delayed by five days.
“A bit early arrival of monsoon in the northwest will boost the kharif acreage in the region,” said an official who keeps track of sowing operations.
Predicting ‘normal’ monsoon rainfall in July, the IMD in its monthly bulletin said, “The spatial distribution suggests that normal to above normal rainfall probability is likely over parts of north India, central India and most parts of south Peninsula…”