Monsoon withdrawal may begin this weekend: IMD

NEW DELHI: The southwest (summer) monsoon, which has so far reported a cumulative (June 1-Sept 14) rainfall deficit of over 14% this season, is likely to start withdrawing from west Rajasthan this weekend. IMD predicted Monday that conditions are becoming favourable for monsoon's withdrawal around Sept 19.Monsoon normally starts withdrawing from Sept 17 and its withdrawal process ends on Oct 15 - a few days ahead of the onset of winter monsoon in peninsular India. The deficit of more than 14% as of Monday shows that monsoon this year is more likely to end with a deficit of 10% or more - a deficient rainfall condition that is considered a drought in the country, with its impact on the farm sector, water storage and hydropower potential.In May, IMD predicted a 'below normal' monsoon (June-Sept) in the country, with a 60% probability of 'deficient' rainfall due to the impact of El Nino, a climatic condition that is invariably associated with a harsh summer and a weak monsoon in India.Though the huge deficit of rainfall did not impact acreage of kharif (summer-sown) crops much, with sown area this year as of Sept 11 only around 1.5% less than sown area during the corresponding period in 2025, the impact can only be assessed through yield when harvesting begins in Oct. "Although sowing has progressed well, it doesn't mean the sector is out of danger," said ratings agency Crisil. Vishwa Mohan is Senior Editor at The Times of India. He writes on environment, climate change, agriculture, water resources and clean energy, tracking policy issues and climate diplomacy. He has been covering Parliament since 2003 to see how politics shaped up domestic policy and India’s position at global platform. Before switching over to explore sustainable development issues, Vishwa had covered internal security and investigative agencies for more than a decade.