Rainfall deficiency in Punjab at 59%, Haryana 55%

Chandigarh: Punjab and Haryana, the two leading agrarian states of the country, have received poor monsoon rains this year so far with deficit as high as 59 and 55 per cent respectively. Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, has also received poor rains this season with a deficit of 52 per cent, a MeT Department official said.

According to the data available between June 1-August 2 this year, Punjab had received a rainfall of 100.8 mm, against a normal of 246.3 mm for the period, resulting in a deficit of 59 per cent, he said. In neighbouring Haryana, the situation was no better with the state receiving a rainfall of 100.9 mm during the period, as against a normal 221.9 mm of rain, leaving a deficit of 55 per cent. Chandigarh had received 203.7 mm of rains between the June 1-August 2 period as against normal of 426.5 mm, resulting in deficit of 52 per cent. The MeT official said in Punjab, places including Barnala (deficit of 85 per cent against normal), Sangrur (80 per cent), Fatehgarh Sahib (78 per cent), Patiala (78 per cent) and Amritsar (72 per cent deficit) received scanty rains while the situation was better in comparison at Moga and Faridkot, where the deficit was by 25 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively. Rohtak (deficit of 86 per cent), Sonepat (75 per cent), Panipat (80 per cent), Fatehabad (72 per cent) and Panchkula (69 per cent), were among other places in Haryana to receive poor rains, he said. Yamunanagar (deficit of 31 per cent), Rewari (31 per cent) and Faridabad (24 per cent) had received more rains in comparison, though they were still far off from the normal mark for the June 1-August 2 period. Punjab has already sought financial assistance of Rs 2,000 crore from the Centre to deal with any drought-like situation in the state. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had earlier this week said that the help has been sought on account of deficit rainfall in the state during the monsoon season. Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has said that the state government will do its best to help the farmers and won`t allow their crops to wither in the wake of poor monsoon rains in the state.