India's Monsoon to Revive, Crops Looking Good
Date: 28-Aug-07
Country: INDIA
There has been devastating flooding in the last month in
some eastern states, but overall this year's rains have been a
boon at 103 percent of the long-term average up to Aug. 22, a
weather department official, who did not wish to be named, told
Reuters.
"We are happy that monsoon rains have neither been extreme
nor deficient barring some extra rains in isolated areas,
causing floods," the official said.
He added that two weeks of poor rains in central states
were likely to end by Friday.
Another official, based at the department's observatory in
the western city of Pune, said the season's rains had been
"good for farm activities".
The monsoon is vital for summer-sown crops, including rice,
cotton, oilseeds and sugarcane, which are planted in July and
harvested from September-October.
"Monsoon rains have been good this year and the weak patch
did not impact oilseed sowing, which was largely completed by
July-end or the first week of August," Govindbhai Patel, an
oilseed trader from the western state of Gujarat, said.
Oilseeds are mainly grown in central and western states.
According to government data released on Friday, farmers
have planted oilseeds on 16.7 million hectares (41.3 million
acres), up from 15.5 million last season.
Planting of other crops has also been progressing well.
"We are heading for yet another bumper sugar production as
planting of cane, which is a water-intensive crop, is much
higher due to bountiful rains," said Mukesh Kuwadia, secretary
general of the Bombay Sugar Merchant Association.
Growers have planted sugarcane on 5.1 million hectares this
year against 4.8 million last year, the farm ministry data
showed.
The four-month southwest monsoon kicks off in the southern
state of Kerala in June, and begins to pull back in September
starting from the western state of Rajasthan.
"We believe monsoon will start retreating from the first
week of September but it is going to be a slow and gradual
process," the weather official said.
With only 40 percent of India's cultivable land irrigated,
the monsoon is important for its trillion-dollar economy as it
determines farm output and subsequent rural demand for a range
of consumer products.
