'Below normal' end for patchy monsoon: IMD

This year's monsoon brought only 94% of the rain it usually brings across the country, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday, classifying it as a "below normal" season that officially draws to a close on September 30.

- Soumya Pillai

IMD officials said the effects of an El Nino weather phenomenon, which usually saps the monsoon in India, were countered by some positive effects, helping make some deficit up.

"The 2023 monsoon ended with 94.4% cumulative rainfall. It is nearly normal, but if you go by our categorisation, it would be a 'below normal' monsoon season," said IMD director general M Mohapatra in a press briefing on Saturday.

The weather agency chief also warned of a warmer than usual October in most parts of India.

The monsoon has been inconsistent across the months and over the length and breadth of the country, a trend that scientists said was a sign of things to come as the Earth warms up due to the climate crisis.

This year, the annual summers rains crucial for the economy's lifeblood agriculture sector - has been a story of wild swings: it started 9% deficient in June, turned to an excess of 13% in July, before logging a big deficiency of 36% in August and, finally, ending with 13% excess precipitation in September.