Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumWeak Monsoon In India; About 20% Short Nationwide; Some Spot Shorfalls Approach 70%
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Indias monsoon rains, which run from June to September, so far are a fifth below average levels. Western India has been worst hit, with rains as much as 70 percent below average in some areas.
Farmers in and around Lasalgaon, a rural town in western India, are seeing brief drizzles each day instead of the usual hours of downpours. In Mumbai, the financial capital on the western coast, roads that usually flood this time of year, forcing the cancellation of business meetings, are open.
Indias government had predicted a normal rainy season, but this week it forecast that the overall monsoon would produce 92 percent of average rainfall, edging closer to the 90 percent mark that signals the first level of drought. More than half of Indias farmlands are not irrigated and rely wholly on rain. Skymet, a private weather forecaster, says there is a 60 percent chance of a drought.
A failed monsoon for one of the worlds biggest producers of grains and sugar could add to pressure on global food prices, with corn and soybean futures hitting record highs this month as the United States experiences its worst drought in 50 years. Indias poor rains likewise threaten yields of soybeans, corn, sugar cane and rice, monsoon-
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/as-crops-wither-and-food-prices-rise-indias-farmers-wait-for-a-good-long-rain/2012/07/28/gJQAa9YGGX_story.html
Denninmi
(6,581 posts)Just like here in the Midwest, they forecast rain, and if we're lucky we get a brief shower.
GliderGuider
(21,088 posts)I wonder what could be causing something like that????
OnlinePoker
(5,702 posts)This is the Indian government's monsoon page. About midway on the righthand side, click the link "accumulated rainfall". It shows this year's rainfall, average rainfall, and total deficit from 1 June to today.
http://www.imd.gov.in/section/nhac/dynamic/Monsoon_frame.htm