25% less rainfall in country this year, says agri expert

The country has received 25 per cent less than normal rainfall so far this year, a senior agriculture scientist today said here.

"The current year has seen scanty and deficient rainfall to the extent of 25 per cent, Dr K D Kokate of the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) said at a review meeting of Krishi Vigyan Kendras of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry.

The food grain production in the country stood at 231.6 million tons in 2007-2008 and 234 million tons the subsequent year, he said, adding that ICAR was providing weather-based agro advisory at the national level and had launched an agricultural management plan as a contingency measure.

Ninety-nine more Krishi Vigyan Kendras would come up across the country in addition to the existing 568 such centres, he said.