Monsoon rains can be the lifeline of India's agriculture and economy and this year they arrived over a week early. The monsoon current is picking up nicely moving towards Bombay, India's financial capital. The monsoon, which brings rain between June and September, has covered the southern Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka as well as the north-eastern parts of the country. Weather officials say it's advancing normally and may engulf the entire country by mid-July.

Farming generates a substantial proportion of the country's revenue with two-thirds of the population reliant on farms to make a living and the monsoon rain accounts for 80 percent of the annual rainfall in India. A bumper harvest puts more money in their pockets! Last year's monsoon was the best in more than a decade, boosting India's crop production and economic growth.

So the rains are vital, a life giver to the area but always at a cost already there have been 45 deaths and 16 fishermen are missing at sea. Mudslides and floods have destroyed nearly 500 houses with more than 1,000 people taking shelter in emergency relief camps.

There's a tropical depression over the east Bay of Bengal at the moment and it's currently moving northwestwards. The forecast for the weekend is for further heavy rainfall accompanied by squally winds reaching 50-60 mph across north Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.. Fisherman are advised not to venture into the sea along these coasts and further heavy rainfall is likely over Telangana, Gangetic west Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Weather News from the last five days:
11/06/2004
10/06/2004
09/06/2004
08/06/2004
07/06/2004

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