Monsoon slows, fears rise

Jun 29, 2010 - Rashme Sehgal |

New Delhi

India’s lifeline, the southwest monsoon, has stopped in its tracks. Climate scientists are trying to put up a brave front, claiming that it will revive within a week, but it is obvious that the monsoon is not behaving as predicted.

The India Meteorological Department, the country’s 135-year-old forecaster, is living up to its patchy forecasting record. In 2009, it predicted a 96 per cent normal monsoon, but the country ended up with a terrible drought.
IMD director-general Anil Tyagi appears a worried man. He said on Monday: “The monsoon is not behaving as expected. The trends are not worrisome yet.” What he failed to spell out is that if the rains do not pick up, the farm sector will face a perilous situation.
The national capital, meanwhile, will once again fail to keep its June 29 date with the monsoon, with the weather office saying Monday that Delhi will have to wait at least a week longer.
Said IMD director B.P. Yadav: “There could be variation of three-four days. We expect the monsoon to hit the city in the first week of July.” In 2009, the monsoon had hit Delhi on June 30.

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