Mumbai, May 21: The drought-hit states of Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu will be receiving below-normal rainfall  this year. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted 95 percent Long Period Average (LPA) rainfall for these states.

The LPA is the average rainfall received by the country as a whole during the south-west monsoon, for a 50-year period. The IMD measures the rainfall based on the LPA every monsoon. The current LPA is 89 cm. The weather forecast agency categorises rainfall in the 96 percent to 104 percent LPA range as normal, while the rainfall less than that is considered below-normal, and LPA below 90 percent is deemed to be deficient.

Moreover, as the IMD has predicted 95 percent LPA rainfall for these drought-prone states, the farmers of the region who were expecting some relief through monsoons might face disappointment. The region faced deficient rainfall last year, causing severe distress to farmers some of whom  committed suicide due to financial problems. Good monsoons are believed to help revive the sector and alleviate rural distress. However, as IMD has predicted monsoons below normal, the worries of farmers might increase again.

India is an agrarian country, and therefore, rainfall and agricultural economy are in correlation with each other. With normal rainfall, the growth rate of agriculture would accelerate. After facing drought situation in the year 2014-15, the graph of agriculture growth rate improved in 2016, however once again in 2017, the country suffered drought as the LPA was near normal levels- 95 percent.

Reportedly, the IMD has predicted normal rainfall in India during the four months -- July till September-- in its second-stage forecast, a day after the monsoons hit the Kerala coast. North-West India, comprising key kharif-crop-growing states such as Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh, is likely to receive higher rainfall than last year, at 100 percent LPA, while the rain is likely to be 99 percent of the LPA for Central India, comprising Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, and 93 percent in the North-East.

Monsoon have already arrived in Kerala and  it is now advancing toward Karnataka, parts of Tamil Nadu and is likely to hit Andhra Pradesh and Telangana on June 3 , while Maharashtra and Goa could expect monsoon showers from June 6.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 31, 2018 11:19 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).