NCDEX benchmark index up 10% over a month, as expectations on sowing gather pace
A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm, named Remal, on Saturday evening and is likely to turn severe before making landfall between the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
Southwest monsoon, the key to the agriculture driven trillion-dollar Indian economy, on Tuesday brought showers to Kerala bringing much-needed relief to farmers.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Friday predicted 'moderate to heavy rainfall' for Mumbai city and its suburbs and the possibility of 'very heavy to extremely heavy' showers at isolated places in the next 24 hours.
A fresh spell of heatwave is likely to begin over northwest India from May 7 and over central India from May 8, the India meteorological department said on Thursday.
The IMD projects total rainfall in the June-September monsoon season as being 99 per cent of the long-period average.
Mohapatra said there is a 40 per cent chance of a normal rainfall, 22 per cent above normal, 12 per cent excess and 18 per cent below normal.
The state, which had been reeling under intense cold wave since a week, got some respite on Thursday as the minimum temperature rose to 4.4 degrees Celsius in capital city Patna while Gaya district recorded 3.4 degree Celsius.
Delhi recorded a cold wave for the second consecutive day on Friday, with the minimum temperature at Ayanagar in southwest Delhi plunging to a numbing 1.8 degrees Celsius.
Several parts of north and west India reeled under scorching heat wave with the temperature touching 50 degree Celsius in Rajasthan's Churu district on Tuesday, even as the meteorological department predicted very heavy rainfall in Assam and Meghalaya till May 28.
With the cooling down of heatwaves as the monsoon spreads across the country, power demand has fallen by 12.5 per cent from the start of this month till Monday. Peak power demand of the country had touched a record of 210 Gw last week, mostly due to rising temperatures and opening up of the economy. Compared with the beginning of this month, almost all states have seen a fall in power demand. Punjab, however, is an exception where the power demand on Monday was 17 per cent higher than on June 1.
Temperatures in March will be critical to determining the impact of any unusual heatwave conditions on this year's wheat crop in North India. It is that time of the year when the crop enters its vital grain-filling stage, say meteorologists and crop experts. So far, the high day temperatures in the North are not believed to have any significant impact on the final yields since the crop hasn't entered a stage where heat affects yields.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD), for the first time, officially hinted at a drought-like situation, saying the southwest monsoon over India in 2012 is likely to be deficient at below 90 per cent of the Long Period Average (LPA).
Above-normal heatwave days are predicted in most parts of central, east and northwest India during this period.
As heavy rains continued to batter Kerala, landslides and flooding were reported from many parts of the state, especially its southernmost district of Thiruvananthapuram, which was severely affected by waterlogging in several areas on Sunday.
All sub-regions have been receiving good rainfall except the North-east and east region of the country, where the deficiency has reached 23 per cent.
The wholesale price index based inflation in June declined to 7.25 per cent from 7.55 per cent in the previous month.
As the southwest monsoon continues to narrow its overall deficit, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday exuded confidence that the dreaded El Nino weather pattern was unlikely to affect monsoon rains this year.
Monsoon will hit the Kerala coast on June 1, setting the stage for the four-month annual rainfall season crucial for India's agriculture-based economy. "The date of onset of the southwest monsoon over Kerala is likely to be on June 1 with a model error of four days," the India Meteorological Department announced on Tuesday.
El Nino, an anomalous rise in sea surface temperature off the Peru coast, has been observed to often cause the Indian monsoon to flounder, resulting in poor rainfall. Nearly 60 per cent of agricultural land is wholly rain-dependent.
Also, the monsoon this year may end up being the driest since 2015, which recorded a rainfall deficit of 13 per cent, they said.
Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices cairman Ashok Gulati tells Business Standard that IMD's prediction should be taken with a pinch of salt, as data shows there is usually a deviation of eight-10 per cent from the standard margin of error in many met predictions.
A powerful earthquake of 7.4 magnitude struck southwestern Pakistan in the small hours of the day, tremors of which were felt in parts of northwestern India, including the national capital.
The south-bound traffic was diverted to another road, the fire control room official said, adding that work was on to remove the debris from the road.
India Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert for Mumbai, warning of very heavy rains at isolated places with strong winds on Monday as cyclone Tauktae is likely to pass close to the Mumbai coast.
The maximum temperature at the Safdarjung Observatory, Delhi's base station, rose to 42.5 degrees Celsius.
The southwest monsoon is set to make its exit in style, bringing rains to the parched parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, as weather forecasters have picked up signs of formation of a cyclonic circulation over Bay of Bengal. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, India Meteorological Department (IMD) director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra on Thursday junked last week's forecast of early withdrawal of southwest monsoon and announced the extended stay of the seasonal showers. "Even though we expected early withdrawal of the southwest monsoon, a cyclonic circulation over west-central and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal will shift the monsoon trough southwards around September 7.
According to Ministry of Earth Science's air quality monitor 'SAFAR', the air quality is likely to improve from Friday onwards due to better wind speed.
The national capital has been witnessing an incessant spell of light to moderate rain for the past two days.
Drought looms as large this year as it did in 2009, even as attempts to play down its impact surface.
The crucial south-west monsoon is expected to bring its first showers to Kerala on June 3, a slight delay that could be attributed to the cyclone activity over the Bay of Bengal. "Southwest monsoon onset over Kerala is likely to be on June 3," said Chief Monsoon Forecaster, India Meteorological Department D Sivananda Pai.
Although the monsoon is not active, it is not sluggish either he said, adding that the eastern coast, central India and north east are getting fairly good rains. Even Maharashtra and parts of peninsula are having rain.
Meanwhile, Chief Medical Superintendent (CMS) of the district hospital, Dr Divakar Singh, was removed and sent to Azamgarh, allegedly after he made a careless remark about the cause of deaths.
Streets in localities like Hindmata, Dadar, Sion, King's Circle and Wadala are waterlogged. Suburban trains were running slow when reports last came in.
The drought of 2009 still haunts the India Meteorological Department.
As the kharif season is setting in, India is scrambling to source fertilisers from the international market. It is set to sign long-term contracts - especially with Morocco and Latin American countries - to ensure steady flow of supplies. "We have to source fertilisers wherever it is available because crops have to be secured.
Senior officials of the India Meteorological Department said they were now more confident that El Nino would indeed appear during the second half of the southwest season, compared to April when the last official forecast was made.
Delhi environment minister Gopal Rai on Monday said the ban on construction and demolition activities in Delhi will continue till further orders in view of the high air pollution levels.
Airlines have been advised to reschedule services, to the convenience of passengers.
The event, for which people had started gathering since morning, began around 11.30 am and went on till around 1 pm. That day, the nearest weather station to the spot of the programme recorded a maximum temperature of 38 degrees Celsius.
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