{
  "id": 3079382,
  "title": "India faces weakest monsoon in nearly two decades",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/24/india-faces-weakest-monsoon-in-nearly-two-decades",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-24T15:14:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Economic Times",
    "slug": "the-economic-times",
    "url": "https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/india-faces-weakest-monsoon-in-nearly-two-decades-as-el-nino-strengthens/articleshow/133471815.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "India is projected to experience its weakest monsoon in nearly two decades, with rainfall expected to fall approximately 15% short of the long-term average, marking the lowest level since 2009, according to senior sources from the country's weather department. This weak monsoon could adversely affect crop yields, increase food prices, and reduce rural incomes in the world's fifth-largest economy, where rainfall accounts for around 70% of the annual total. A lack of adequate rains during the critical September month could hamper the growth of summer-sown crops like cotton, soybean, corn, and pulses, while also depleting soil moisture essential for winter-sown crops such as wheat and rapeseed.\n\nExperts attribute the impending weak monsoon to the intensifying El Niño, a climate pattern characterized by unusually warm sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific. This phenomenon disrupts global weather patterns and can bring drier conditions to Southeast Asia and other regions. The IMD's senior official cited a potential double-digit rainfall deficit in September, which could result in an 85% of normal rainfall for the June-September season, nearly double the 8% deficit initially forecast by the weather department. Most parts of the country, except for some eastern states, are expected to receive below-average rainfall in September, widening the seasonal deficit.\n\nThe monsoon season, which typically begins in June and starts to recede by September 17 from northwestern parts of the country, has already seen rainfall 13% below average since its onset on June 1. Rainfall was notably 35.4% below average in June before a 1% surplus in July provided a temporary respite. The monsoon has weakened further in August, with rainfall running 15% below average so far.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}