This monsoon, Punjab received 16 per cent below normal rain

Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, September 29

As the monsoon retreats for this year, it has left behind below normal rain in the region. While the country, as a whole, experienced slightly surplus rain, with the monsoon being the wettest since 1994, the average shortfall in the three largely agrarian states of north India amounted to almost 19 per cent.

From June 1 to September 29, Himachal received 565.5 mm rain against the normal of 762.7 mm, as per the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Punjab received 391.7 mm against the normal of 466.4 mm, while Haryana received 376.1 mm against the normal of 438.2 mm during this period.

As per the weather experts, the monsoon withdrawal was underway and it had already retreated from many parts of Punjab and Rajasthan. It is expected to withdraw completely from north India this week. Conditions are becoming favourable for further withdrawal of the southwest monsoon from some more parts of Rajasthan and Punjab and some parts of Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi during the next two or three days, IMD forecast states.

As per the Consensus Statement on the Forecast for the 2020 October to December, which was issued during the 17th session of the South Asian Climate Outlook Forum, below normal rainfall was likely during the season over the northwestern and northern parts of South Asia, including some areas along the foothills of the Himalayas.

According to the forum’s statement, circulated by the IMD, weak La Nina conditions are prevailing in the tropical Pacific Ocean and neutral Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) conditions over the Indian Ocean. These parameters, which are known to influence the climate variability over South Asia, are likely to continue at their current level between October and December.