Favourable outlook: A good monsoon may lead to growth-enhancing steps

Despite improvements in irrigation coverage, precipitation during the southwest monsoon remains crucial for agricultural production

After the favourable monsoon in 2024, culminating in 7.6 per cent more rain than the long-period average (LPA), the India Meteorological Department’s monsoon forecast for this year again came as good news for a second successive year, with the prediction of an above-normal southwest monsoon rainfall in 2025, estimated at 5 per cent above normal. With Neutral El Nino-Southern Oscillation conditions prevailing over the equatorial Pacific region and the atmospheric circulation being similar to La Nina conditions, a strong monsoon circulation is expected over the subcontinent. However, the spatial distribution of monsoon is not expected to be uniform. Bihar, Tamil