Normal monsoon rains in 2019: Skymet

The monsoon season delivers about 70 per cent of annual rainfall and is key to the success of the farm sector in Asia's third-biggest economy. PTI file photo

Monsoon rains are expected to be normal in 2019, the country's only private weather forecasting agency said on Monday, raising prospects of higher farm and economic growth in the $2 trillion economy.

There is a more than 50 per cent chance for normal rainfall and only a small probability of excessive rainfall, Jatin Singh, chief executive officer at Skymet, said.

India defines average, or normal, rainfall as between 96 per cent and 104 per cent of a 50-year average of 89 cm for the entire four-month season beginning June.

The monsoon season delivers about 70 per cent of annual rainfall and is key to the success of the farm sector in Asia's third-biggest economy.