The south-west monsoon seldom fails completely. Even during the worst monsoon seasons, some parts of the country get good rainfall.
The unfortunate part, however, is even during the best monsoon seasons, some pockets remain deficient. This has happened this year in parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.
From the meteorological view point, the total rainfall in some of these areas may be either normal or only marginally deficient, but farm operations have been severely hampered.
Sugarcane in Maharashtra is the worst sufferer with the output feared to drop to less than half of normal. The reservoir recharging, too, is worrying in some of these tracts.
On the whole, the country has been lucky to have about two per cent above normal cumulative seasonal rainfall during the monsoon season that ended on September 30, against 19 per cent below normal in the 2002 monsoon season.
Though the India Meteorological Department is still compiling the overall rainfall data for issuing the season-end monsoon report, firm numbers available till September 24 indicate normal or excess rainfall in 33 of the country
