India's monsoon 13% below normal, farmers worried about crops
India's monsoon has been all over the place this year, and that's got farmers worried.
July saw a bit more rain than usual, but it wasn't enough to make up for June's big shortfall, so by the end of July, the country was still down 13% on rainfall.
The weather department says August might not bring much relief either, which could spell trouble for crop production.
India's kharif sowing area down 5%
16 states, including big farming ones like UP and Karnataka, are dealing with less rain than they need.
Some regions in Maharashtra got lucky, but others missed out, hurting crops like pigeon pea.
In Karnataka's Hasan area, rainfall is down 60%, making planting tough.
Overall, less land is being used for kharif crops this year (down 5% from last year), especially rice, pulses, and oilseeds in states like Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
If things don't improve soon, we could see food shortages or higher prices ahead.