India Records Weakest Monsoon in Over a Decade as Rainfall Falls 12.6% Below Average
5paisa Capital Ltd
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Last Updated: 30th September 2026 - 05:09 pm
India has recorded its weakest monsoon in more than a decade, with rainfall during the June-September season ending well below the long-term average as El Nino weighed on rains across the country.
Rainfall during the four-month monsoon season was 12.6% below the long-period average, marking a sharp turnaround after an especially weak start to the season.
The shortfall was already evident by September 13, when India had received 15% less rainfall than normal, according to data from the India Meteorological Department.
The impact was not uniform across the country. Southern peninsular India saw the biggest shortage, with rainfall 28% below normal. East and Northeast India followed with a deficit of 25%.
June brought a difficult start
The monsoon began on a particularly weak footing this year. Rainfall in June was 36.5% below normal, leaving large parts of the country waiting for stronger showers.
The slow start also affected the pace of kharif sowing. By the end of June, the area under cultivation was nearly 21% lower than during the corresponding period last year.
Conditions improved as the season progressed. Rainfall picked up in July and August and helped narrow some of the deficit built up during June. July rainfall, on an all-India basis, finished 1% above normal.
Nevertheless, that development did not compensate for the poor start to the monsoons and the continued droughts experienced in many parts of the country.
Moreover, deficits in rainfall were highly varied, with some areas receiving no shortage and others as much as 35% less rain than normal.
The 2026 monsoon concluded with a deficit of 12.6% compared to the long-period average, which made it India’s poorest monsoon rainfall in over a decade.
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