In 11 states and UTs, including Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, 50% or more districts experienced deficient to "large deficient" rainfall, as per an analysis.
The
possibility of a drought looms over 251 districts of India, mainly in
the east, northeast and south, according to an IndiaSpend analysis of
rainfall data for 2018.
Karnataka
declared 23 out of its total 30 districts drought-hit
due to deficient rainfall, and Andhra Pradesh announced that 274
blocks in six districts were ‘severe drought hit’. With Jaisalmer
and Barmer districts getting less than 60% of normal rains, western
Rajasthan is experiencing a dry spell after a decade. The Marathwada
and Vidarbha regions of Maharashtra
are faced with a drought-like situation.
With
three days left for September 30, 2018, the official departure of the
ongoing southwest monsoon, this year could likely be a “normal”
monsoon year. The cumulative rainfall over the country over 117 days
since the beginning of the monsoon on June 1, 2018, was -9% of the
long term average, according to the latest weekly analysis of the
India meteorological department (IMD) published on September 26,
2018. The rainfall was deficient or -10% by September 19, the
preceding week.(Business
Standard)
The
southwest monsoon accounts for 70% of India’s annual rainfall and
is important for its agricultural economy, which is valued at Rs 18
trillion ($250 billion in 2016), or 11% of its gross domestic product
(GDP).
The
IMD categorises monsoon rainfall as “deficient” at a state or a
district level when it receives 20%-59% less rainfall than the
long-term average and as "large deficient" when it is
60%-99% less. A deficient monsoon year is when the cumulative
rainfall across the country remains -10% or above, once called an
‘All India Drought Year’.
Rainfall
in 251 districts--nearly 37% of India’s districts--remained
deficient to "large deficient" till the week ending
September 26, 2018. In 11 states and union territories (UTs),
including Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Gujarat and
Tamil Nadu, 50% or more districts experienced deficient to "large
deficient" rainfall, as per our analysis.
“Let
us wait for the monsoon to end,” D Shivanand Pai, head of the
climatic prediction group at the India Meteorological Department,
Pune, told IndiaSpend. “Rainfall-deficient regions in the peninsula
may receive more rainfall in the remaining days, which would improve
over rainfall figures.”
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