July to see below-normal rainfall across most of India: IMD
New Delhi, June 30
Monthly average rainfall over the country as a whole during July 2026 is most likely to be below normal, the India Meteorological Department said on Tuesday.
According to an IMD press release, the long-period average (LPA) of rainfall over the country as a whole during July, based on data from 1971-2020, may be about 280.4 mm. Regionally, below-normal rainfall is likely across most parts of the country except some areas of Northwest and Northeast India, Eastcentral India and the eastern peninsular region, where normal to above-normal rainfall is likely.
Currently, weak El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) conditions are prevailing over the equatorial Pacific Ocean and neutral Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) conditions are being observed over the Indian Ocean. The model forecast indicates that neutral IOD conditions are likely to persist during the Southwest Monsoon season.
Meanwhile, senior IMD scientist Sandeep Kumar Sharma confirmed that the Southwest Monsoon made its way to Himachal Pradesh today, nearly a week behind its usual schedule, as per India Meteorological Department (IMD)'s data.
Speaking to ANI, Sharma shared, "Today, June 30th, the monsoon has arrived in certain areas of Himachal Pradesh, covered whole Kinnaur district, made its presence felt in many parts of Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti. It has also arrived in parts of Sirmaur district... and areas around Shimla district... There is a possibility that within the next 2-3 days, the monsoon will arrive in the remaining areas such as parts of Kangra and Chamba districts... there is a delay of about a week in monsoon's arrival in the state."
IMD had issued the first stage forecast for the 2026 southwest monsoon seasonal (June to September) rainfall over the country on April 13 and updated the forecast on May 29.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Here we go again. Last year was below normal too in many regions in Karnataka. So many farmers are dependent on rain for kharif crops. Wish IMD would give more localized advisories instead of just country-level predictions.
Climate change is real. El Nino patterns are becoming more unpredictable. This is the new normal - we have to adapt our agriculture and water management accordingly. 😔
Lived in India for 5 years now. The monsoon unpredictability really affects daily life - from power cuts to traffic jams. But the resilience of people here is amazing. Hope IMD's warnings help everyone prepare better.
Important point: neutral IOD conditions mean no counterbalance to El Nino. That's bad news for monsoon. We need more investment in water storage infrastructure across states - not just dams but local pond and check dam revival.
As someone working in agri-tech, this underscores the need for precision farming. Rain-fed agriculture will suffer. Time for farmers to get access to better drought-resistant seeds and micro-irrigation subsidies.
My village in Tamil Nadu hardly got any rain last July. People had to rely entirely on borewells. You can't just rely on IMD predictions - everyone should start saving water
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