Good rains for next 2 weeks to speed up sowing, cover deficit
The southwest monsoon rains have increased over central India, Northern Plains and Western Himalayan region since Wednesday, it said.
Pune: The country facing 17 per cent less rain than average since the four month monsoon season began on June 1, is all set to get above normal rains over most parts of the country during next two weeks, the India Meteorological Department or IMD said on Thursday.
"The atmospheric conditions are very favourable to receive above normal rains over most parts of the country over the next two weeks," AK Srivastava, Director at National Climate Centre of India Meteorological Department (IMD) at Pune told Financial Chronicle.
He said these good spells of rains will help to speed up planting of summer sown crops across the country and also make up rain deficit.
The country had received below average rains in the past two weeks.
Last week from July 18 to 24, the rain deficit in the country as a whole was at 35 per cent. But the cumulative rains from June 1 to July 24 was 19 per cent less than the average rains.
The latest on Thursday special IMD bulletin said fairly widespread to widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy falls are likely over Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab during next 48 hours.
The southwest monsoon rains have increased over central India, Northern Plains and Western Himalayan region since Wednesday, it said.
Monsoon rains are crucial for India's farm output and economic growth as about 60 per cent of the country's arable land is rain dependent and agriculture forms about 15 per cent of the $2.6 trillion economy.
The government-run weather agency has also forecast that fairly widespread to widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy and extremely heavy falls are likely over south Haryana and north Rajasthan on Thursday.
Strong wind convergence along the northern parts of West Coast is likely to cause widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy falls over Konkan & Goa and ghat areas of Madhya Maharashtra during next four-five days. Isolated extremely heavy falls are also likely over this region mainly on July 26 and 28.
Srivastava said plus or minus 19 per cent rains is a normal range and nothing to worry about.
"More importantly the next two weeks' above average rains will be timely and well distributed across the country," the weatherman said.
Also, more importantly, some pockets of Madhya Pradesh, Vidharbha and Marathawad region in Maharashtra, Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chattisghar which have received deficient rains would be covered, he said.