The monsoon has progressed to cover almost all parts of the country, with it expected to advance into Jammu, Himachal Pradesh and parts of Haryana and Punjab. But even as the monsoon covers northern parts of India ahead of schedule, it continues to be deficient in southern and eastern India.
In its usual paradoxical way, nearly as many parts of India have had excess rainfall as deficient – Jhajjar in Haryana had received 424% rainfall above normal as of the week ending on July 5, according to data from the India Meteorological Department. Bhadohi district between Allahabad and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh has the highest deficit with 92% less than normal rainfall in that period.
In all, 143 districts across the country have received 20% to 59% less rainfall than normal. Twenty districts, mostly in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and the easternmost parts of the North East have had rain between 60% to 99% less than usual. On the other hand, 112 districts, mostly in but not limited to Rajasthan, Punjab, and parts of Uttar Pradesh, have had 60% more than normal rainfall.
Worryingly for southern India, parts of which have faced back to back droughts for three years now, the basins of rain fed rivers…
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