Low monsoon rain in Punjab, Haryana likely

Karam Prakash

New Delhi, May 26

In view of potential strong El Nino conditions — a weather phenomenon associated with low monsoon rainfall in India — Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh are likely to receive below-normal rainfall this monsoon.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has, however, predicted normal rainfall for the rest of the country.

Releasing the second long-range forecast for the monsoon on Friday, the IMD said strong El Nino conditions would be countered by a positive Indian dipole, which would favour monsoon in the rest of the country.

Farmers of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh are likely to be hit hard. The farmers, who are readying for the kharf season, have to look for sources of irrigation for a good yield.

“The southwest monsoon rainfall is likely to be below normal over northwest India. It will be less than 92 per cent of the long period average (LPA),” said Dr DS Pai, a senior scientist at the IMD.

He said rainfall over the country as a whole was likely to be 96 per cent of the LPA with a model error of plus/minus 4 per cent.

The IMD considers 96 to 100 per cent of the LPA as normal rainfall. The LPA of the seasonal rainfall over the country as a whole for the 1971-2020 period is 87 cm.