Monsoon unlikely to progress for nearly two weeks

India receives about 70% of its annual rain during the four-month monsoon that is crucial for rice, soybean, and cotton cultivation. As much as 60% of the sown area does not have access to irrigation in India, where over 150 million farmers and nearly half of the population are dependent on a farm-based income.
The monsoon is unlikely to progress to Delhi, Chandigarh, Haryana, remaining parts of Rajasthan, west Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab for nearly two weeks and is also likely to enter a “break spell” from June 29 onwards, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday. Heavy rain will be confined to northeast India while rainfall will be subdued in the rest of the country at least till around July 5, it added.