PUNE: The southwest monsoon rains, the lifeblood of the Indian economy, irrigating over 70 per cent of farmland with no irrigation facilities, are likely to enter India through the southern coast around June 8, the India Meteorological Department, or IMD, said on Wednesday.
The IMD had earlier forecast arrival of monsoon rains over Kerala on June 6.
Monsoon rains usually arrive on the southern tip of Kerala around June 1, marking the start of the four-month rainy season.
“Certain conditions are to be met, which are likely to happen around June 8 for us to declare the onset of monsoon rains,” D. Sivananda Pai, chief monsoon forecaster at IMD told Financial Chronicle.
In fact, he said it is already raining in Kerala, but it would take time for westerly winds, among other parameters, to deepen to declare the arrival of monsoon rains.
However, the bad news is that the cumulative June and July rainfall would be relatively below normal because of the delayed monsoon.
“We are expecting delay in the monsoon to reach central India and this could cause a little below normal rains,” Pai said.
The onset of monsoon rains in the first week of June is critical for the farm sector that accounts for about 14 per cent of India’s $2.6 trillion economy and employs more than half of the country’s 1.3 billion people.
Millions are awaiting overdue monsoon rains to secure drinking water amid a heat wave that is rapidly drying up reservoirs and sending temperatures soaring across the country.
