Govt cuts monsoon expectations to below average

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India's crucial monsoon rains are now expected to be below average, the government said on Monday, turning to contingency plans as rainfall has been about a fifth under par so far and recent rains have not been enough to ease concerns.

The monsoon lost momentum last week, falling 22 per cent short of averages and raising the risk of a drought year in one of the world's leading producers of grains and sugar just as global prices hit record highs.

The government scaled down the weather office's forecast of rains at 96 per cent of a 50-year average towards 92 per cent of the average – still avoiding a drought.

PM directs weekly monitoring

As the Monsoon rain recorded 22 per cent deficiency, a concerned government has swung into action, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh directing all departments and ministries to coordinate with states to meet any eventuality by monitoring the situation on a weekly basis.

The Central government has prepared extensive plans to deal with the deficiency in the Monsoon rainfall in some parts of the country and is in full readiness to address any situation that may arise due to any rainfall anomalies, an official statement said here today.

It said the Prime Minister has been apprised of the situation and he has directed all departments and ministries to co-ordinate efforts with state governments to meet any eventuality and monitor the situation on a weekly basis.

Monsoon crucial for crops

The poor rains have slowed the speed of planting crops such as rice, cereals, pulses and oilseeds including soybean, but areas under cane, mainly grown in irrigated regions, have been higher than the previous year.

Monsoon rains are crucial for farm output as the showers irrigate 55 percent of India's farmlands. The four-month season accounts for 75 percent of the country's annual rainfall and half of that is usually delivered in June and July.

"Rains are expected to improve over central India this week, but don't expect the improvement to completely wipe out the deficiency in rainfall so far," said S.C. Bhan, a director at India's weather office.

"We don't expect any dry phase in monsoon this week," he added.