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India heading towards normal monsoon season

The monsoon rains, a key influence on the economy, in June-July were 5 per cent above normal in the country as a whole but deficient in some oilseed-growing regions, the weather department said on Friday.

The India Meteorological Department said in a mid-season review it expected the June-September southwest monsoon season to be normal.

"In the first half of the season the country as a whole has received 5 per cent excess rainfall as compared to the normal value for the period," the IMD said in a statement.

"The cumulative rainfall from June to September 2001, for the country as a whole...is expected to be normal as indicated in IMD's long-range forecast," the statement added.

Officials define a monsoon as normal if the overall rainfall is 10 per cent above or below the long-term average. Good monsoon rains are crucial for a good harvest which boosts rural incomes and lifts consumption in the mainly agricultural country.

Groundnut crop hit

The IMD said rainfall was deficient in nine sub divisions in the country including Rayalseema in southern Andhra Pradesh, Marathawada and north and south interior Karnataka.

Rayalseema is a groundnut-growing region, Marathwada grows soybean and Karnataka cultivates oilseeds.

The statement said a redeeming feature of this year's monsoon was that Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, which were hit by a drought in 1999 and 2000, received timely and excess to normal rainfall.

Gujarat is the country's main groundnut-growing region, Madhya Pradesh is the soybean bowl and Rajashtan grows rapeseed/mustard.

Traders said deficient rains in some parts would hit the oilseeds crop, mainly groundnut.

An increase in groundnut production in Gujarat due to the good rains will be partially offset by lower output in states like Andhra Pradesh, Devi Prasad Khandelia, chairman of the Central Organisation for Oil Industry and Trade, said.

Groundnut production in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh might drop to about 1.8 million tonnes from 2.4 million tonnes, said B V Mehta, executive director of the Solvent Extractors Association of India.

But output in Gujarat could increase to 1.6-1.8 million tonnes from 750,000 tonnes last year, he added.

Traders said the soybean crop in Madhya Pradesh was progressing well and the yield in the state could increase by 15-20 per cent this year.

Excessive rains since June have caused floods in Orissa and Bihar.

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