While heavy rains have lashed parts of Assam and Meghalaya in the northeast, planting of rain-fed kharif crops has been delayed in Odisha, where the rain deficit is 39%.
New research from University of Kansas suggests that the positive dust–monsoon correlation could be partially attributed to the heating over the Iranian Plateau.
The monsoon, which typically runs from June to September, is considered normal when total rainfall is between 96% and 104% of the national average of just over 88cm.
The excess rainfall is likely to damage crops such as soybean, onion, urad and moong in major production states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.
The rainfall, decrease in temperatures and cooling of the atmosphere coupled with progression towards winter may environmentally favour the spread of the virus.
A good monsoon assumes greater significance this year as millions have lost livelihoods because of the stringent lockdown imposed to stem the coronavirus.
The June-September rains is critical to Indian agriculture as it not only waters some fields directly, but also fills reservoirs that help irrigate winter-sown crops.
Lack of infrastructure, complex nature of weather, and poor coordination make forecasting weather a tough proposition, not only in India but across the world.
What is Shiv Sena’s ideology? We might say it’s been a convenient mix of extreme ethnic chauvinism & unforgiving Hindutva. Within the second, the party retained space to manoeuvre.