Shimla: The southwest monsoon, deficient in Himachal Pradesh this year, has withdrawn, the weather bureau here said Tuesday.
This year the rainfall was eight percent deficient in the state, contrary to last year when it was 16 percent more than the normal.
"From June 1 to Sep 26, the state experienced 730.8 mm rainfall against the normal of 793.2 mm," state Met office director Manmohan Singh said.
Lahaul and Spiti and Solan districts received deficient rainfall, he said.
But there was practically "no big gap" between one spell and another, the director added.
The state saw deficit rainfall of 36 percent in 2009.
Himachal Pradesh's agriculture and horticulture-based economy is highly dependent on the monsoon.
IANS
First Published: Tuesday, September 27, 2011, 12:01