New Delhi: Southwest monsoon rainfall fell to 87 per cent of the long-period average in 2026, the lowest since 2015, prompting rating agency ICRA to cut its agriculture, forestry and fishing growth forecast for the fiscal year to about 1 per cent from 1.3 per cent.
The deficient and uneven rains have already weighed on kharif sowing, which was 1.2 per cent below year-earlier levels by end-September, while depleted reservoir levels raise concerns over the upcoming rabi season, particularly in southern and some northern states, ICRA said in its monsoon wrap-up.
