New York, Sept 10: The country currently experiencing the heaviest monsoon rains in five years, is gearing up for bumper rice and oilseed crops when harvesting begins in early October, weather officials and traders said on Wednesday. The country received 104 per cent of long-term average rainfall at the end of August while rainfall was 108 per cent of the long-term average in June and July, the first two months of the season.

Last year the country was hit by the worst drought in 15 years with rains dipping to 70 per cent of the average in June and July.
"The best part about this year's monsoon has been it was evenly spread," S.K. Srivastava, additional director general of India's Meteorological Department, told Reuters.
Traders said rice and oilseed plantings, the main winter crops, were progressing well and output was expected to be much higher than last year due also to an increase in crop acreage.
Winter crops, comprising mainly rice, cotton, groundnut and soybean, are sown in the monsoon months of June and July and harvested in the winter months of October and November. Bureau Report