Overview
- The India Meteorological Department said on Wednesday, September 30, that June–September rainfall totaled 759.4 mm, roughly 12.6–13% below the 1971–2020 long‑period average and the weakest seasonal total in more than a decade.
- Deficits were highly uneven: the South Peninsular and East & Northeast regions recorded the largest shortfalls of about 24–28%, and 282 districts finished the season in the IMD’s deficient category.
- The season began with an exceptionally dry June, which cut early kharif sowing and left cultivated area far below last year by end‑June, though by late September total kharif area was only marginally lower year‑on‑year at about 110.7–110.8 million hectares.
- Live storage and soil moisture are below last year in several basins, and the IMD now projects below‑normal rainfall for October and much of Oct–Dec as El Niño strengthens, raising the risk that rabi sowing and yields in rain‑fed areas will suffer.
- While late low‑pressure systems narrowed the national shortfall, the season still ranks as the fourth‑lowest since 2001; states have begun drought declarations and will need to balance relief measures, irrigation releases and planting decisions in the coming weeks.