IMD forecasts below-normal September rainfall and above-average temperatures for India

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday announced that monthly rainfall over India during September is most likely to be below normal with country witnessing above average maximum temperature during the month.

India ​is likely to ​receive below-average monsoon rains in ‌September ⁠after precipitation ⁠in ​August was 16% below ​average ​said ​Mrutyunjay ⁠Mohapatra, director-general of the IMD, raising ‌concerns ​about ​farm output ⁠and economic growth in ​Asia's third-largest economy. September ​rainfall is forecast at less than 91% ‌of the long-period average.

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For September, the LPA (rainfall recorded over a particular region for a given period, such as a month or a season, averaged over a long period, typically 30 to 50 years) is about 167.9 mm based on data between 1971 and 2020.

"In terms of the monsoon impact, again, notwithstanding the volatility we have seen in the rainfall, starting with a very high deficit in June, making up for it in July, and a somewhat relatively stable deficit ratio in the course of August, it is interesting to note that many parts of the country have received adequate rainfall, and that is shown in the fact that the sowing activity is only marginally lower in this Kharif season compared to last year across various crops and cereals, etc." said Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran briefing the media on India's economic growth.

This augurs well for agricultural output growth in the current financial year, he said, adding that the country would have to wait and see the impact on the Rabi crop.

"But by then, let's see whether the super-strong El Nino is offset by the Indian Ocean Dipole, etc. But by and large, the news has been better than what we may have feared at the end of June, and that is good news for GDP growth outcomes in the second and third quarters as well," he added.