Indian monsoon expected this week ahead of schedule

India's annual monsoon, a lifeline for millions of farmers, is likely to arrive a week early and hit the southern coastal state of Kerala on Friday, an official said on Tuesday. "The monsoon has reached the east Bay of Bengal. It will hit the Kerala coast by Friday," D.S. Pai, director of the India meteorological department in western Pune city, told AFP.

The monsoon is forecast to fall slightly short of the normal amount of rain. According to the weather office, a monsoon season is considered normal if the rains equal 98 percent to 102 percent of the annual average.

Officials predict the rainfall will be about 95 percent of the average this year with a five percent margin of error. The season accounts for around 80 percent of the India's annual rainfall, vital for the farm economy, which lacks adequate irrigation facilities.

The agriculture sector employs more than 60 percent of the Indian workforce and generates over a fifth of India's gross domestic product. A bounteous monsoon triggers rural spending on a host of consumer and industrial goods, helping the economy grow.

The southwest monsoon is crucial for crops such as rice, oilseeds and pulses. The monsoon normally starts during the first week of June off the southern coast of Kerala and moves north to cover all of India by the middle of July.

Distribution of the rainfall is key to determining whether the monsoon is successful. Even if overall rainfall is plentiful, there can be droughts in some regions. The rains usually cover the full country by mid-July.

According to officials monitoring the monsoon's progress, it reached the South Andaman Sea on May 10, almost a week ahead of its normal arrival date.

AFP