The India Meteorological Department said that there will be “below normal” rains in most parts of the country, except in some areas of the northeast, southern peninsula, and northwest India. Photo: X/@Indiametdept
India is staring at a ‘below normal’ southwest monsoon, the India Meteorological Department warned for the first time in 11 years in its April forecast. Between the monsoon months of June-September, India is likely to receive only 92% of the Long Period Average (LPA) of 87 cm this monsoon, M. Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences said at a press briefing on Monday.
India last experienced reduced monsoon rainfall in 2023, when the IMD had warned of “near normal” rainfall at 96% of the LPA. In 2015, the IMD’s warning of below normal rain — at 93% of the LPA — turned out to be an underestimate. Actual rainfall was recorded at 86% and it ended as one of India’s worst drought years.
Published – April 13, 2026 05:44 pm IST
