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India gets rain but showers poor in groundnut belt

Several regions in India have received good rain with the revival of the southwest monsoon but showers have been scanty in most parts of the groundnut-growing Saurashtra region, traders and weather officials said on Monday.

India is likely to witness a sharp drop in farm output in the winter season due to a severe drought following insufficient rain in the past two months. Fresh rains are unlikely to reverse yield losses so far, but could arrest further decline, they said.

India has been hit by its worst drought in more than 15 years, with 30 per cent less rainfall than normal in the annual June-September monsoon.

"About 30 per cent of Saurashtra region got good rains over the weekend, but other parts need urgent showers," said an oilseed trader based in Junagarh city in Gujarat.

Saurashtra accounts for nearly 90 per cent of groundnut grown in Gujarat, which produces almost half of India's output of the oilseed.

"We are seeing cloudy weather, but rains are missing," said Dayabhai Patel, director of Khedut Solvexp Ltd, based in Rajkot district. "It is only drizzling in some pockets."

A key trade organisation, Solvent Extractors' Association of India, has said winter groundnut output is likely to fall to 4.1 million tonnes from 5.1 million due to deficient rains.

According to weather officials, 25 out of 36 meteorological subdivisions of the country received deficient or scanty rains between June 1 and August 7.

"The northern parts of the country have got good rainfall (over the weekend) while it has been a bit subdued in the central Indian regions," H R Hatwar, director of India Meteorological Department, told Reuters. "Whatever is lost in July, is lost. These rains will be good for the next crop."

He said Saurashtra received subdued or isolated rains but there was no rain in the extreme Kutch region of Gujarat.

"The monsoon has revived over the country but we cannot say it is getting strengthened because no large trough is developing," Hatwar said.

Traders said groundnut in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, which contributes nearly 20 per cent to India's total output, was also likely to see an output fall given an approximately 30 per cent drop in the crop area.

"There is no immediate threat to the crop in the state due to poor rains, but output is not going to be more than 600,000 to 800,000 tonnes in the current winter season," said Vitta Satish Kumar, a partner of Andhra Pradesh-based V K Extractions Ltd.

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