Excess rains in north India; south faces 17% deficiency this season
More than expected rainfall in July, monsoon’s wettest month, has lifted the spirits for two prominent stakeholders in the economy, the farming community and the hydel power sector, which has high level of water in its reservoirs.
The country received 290.4 mm rain in July alone, which is more than 100 per cent of normal, according to latest data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD). A rainfall of 289.2 mm in July and 261.3 mm in August is considered normal. The IMD had predicted in June that the country would get 96 per cent rain of the long period average (LPA) during July and 99 per cent of LPA in August with a model error of plus or minus 9 per cent.
The region-wise rainfall data shows that southern states had received eight per cent above normal in June. But a sudden dry spell in July with rainfall at 36 per cent below average created a deficiency level of 17 per cent this monsoon season since June 1.
The situation in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and south interior Karnataka is described as very bad with as much as 34 per cent rainfall deficiency. The distribution of rainfall remains highly uneven. If south is deficient until now, the northwest region that includes Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have received 18 per cent more than normal monsoon rains since June 1.
India received normal rainfall last year after two consecutive years of drought and it lifted the country’s annual food production to a record 273.38 million tonnes. Farmers have planted monsoon crops such as rice, pulses and cotton in 79.13 million hectares as of July 28 against 76.58 million hectares in the year-ago period, up by 3.3 per cent, agriculture ministry data shows.
In addition, water storage level in 91 major reservoirs rose 39 per cent in the week ended July 27 from 19 per cent as on June 22, an official statement by water resources ministry said.
The total live storage in reservoirs rose to 60.906 billion cubic metres (bcm) as on July 27 from 29.409 bcm on Jun 22. The live storage available in these reservoirs is 104 per cent of the corresponding period of last year.