New Delhi: The southwest monsoon is expected to be normal this year, informed India Meteorological Department (IMD).
“Southwest monsoon seasonal (June to September) rainfall over the country as a whole is likely to be near normal. Quantitatively, the monsoon seasonal (June to September) rainfall is likely to be 96% of the Long Period Average (LPA) with a model error of ± 5%. The LPA of the season rainfall over the country as a whole for the period 1951-2000 is 89 cm,” said IMD DG Dr KJ Ramesh in a press conference.
Weak El Niño conditions are likely to prevail during the monsoon season with reduced intensity in the later part of the season, said Ramesh.
“The sea surface temperature (SST) conditions over the Pacific (El Niño/La Niña) and Indian Oceans (Indian Ocean Dipole-IOD) which are known to have strong influence on Indian monsoon are being continuously monitored. Overall, the country is expected to have well distributed rainfall scenario during the 2019 monsoon season, which will be beneficial to farmers in the country during the ensuing kharif season,” added he.
