According to the state-run India Meteorological Department, India's annual monsoon, which brings around 70% of the country's rainfall, arrived on the coast of southern Kerala state on Sunday (May 29).
On May 13, the department predicted that monsoon rains will arrive in Kerala on May 27, and on Friday, it indicated that conditions were improving for the onset of the monsoon over Kerala in the next two to three days.
India, one of the world's largest producers and consumers of agricultural products, relies on monsoon rains to water nearly half of its irrigated farmland. If the monsoon fails, New Delhi may be forced to import more edible oils and limit agricultural exports, raising international prices.
Last month, the government predicted average monsoon rains for this year, indicating that farm and overall economic development in Asia's third-largest economy will be greater.
Only after metrics evaluating rainfall consistency across a defined geography, intensity, cloudiness, and wind speed are satisfied does the meteorological department pronounce the advent of monsoon rains.
It defines ordinary, or normal, rainfall as falling between 96% and 104% of the 50-year average of 87cm for the June-to-July period.
Farming supports more than half of India's 1.3 billion inhabitants and provides about 15% to the country's US$2.7 trillion (S$3.7 trillion) economy.
Regular rains during the monsoon season can provide relief from the scorching heat in addition to watering farmland and replenishing aquifers and reservoirs.
The world's largest exporter of rice, India, would benefit from plentiful monsoon rains. India's unexpected decision to limit wheat exports has generated concerns about restrictions on rice exports as well.
On Thursday, government and industry officials told Reuters that India had no plans to limit rice exports because the country's supplies were ample and prices were stable.
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