Question.
Give the characteristics and effects of the monsoon rainfall in India.
( Chapter - 4 Climate, Cass 9 NCERT Contemporary India -I )
Answer.
Characteristics of Monsoon Rain in India:
The following are the main characteristics of monsoon rains in India
The arrival of monsoon rains is called the "burst" of the monsoon.
In the northern plains, the monsoon winds do not produce rain for two to three weeks, a phenomenon called a "break" in the monsoon.
The duration of monsoon rain is about 100 to 120 days as it starts in the first week of June and lasts till the middle of September.
The movement of monsoon rains from southern India to the northern plains is called the "advancing monsoon".
The movement of monsoon winds from the northern plains toward southern India is called a "Retreating Monsoon". Monsoon retreat is a slow process over the northern part of India while it retreats faster over the southern part of India.
The southwest monsoon winds provide 90 percent of India's annual rainfall.
Monsoon rainfall over India is highly erratic in both rainfall duration and rainfall amount as it is dependent on several variables such as jetstreams, ITCZ, El Niño, Southern Oscillation (SO), and ENSO.
Some parts of India such as Meghalaya and the Western Ghats receive more than 400 cm of rainfall, while some parts of India receive less than 20 cm of rainfall such as western Rajasthan, part of Gujarat, Ladakh, and the windless part of the Western Ghats.
In the northern plains, the monsoon rainfall decreases from east to west.
Effects of Monsoon Rain in India:
Following are the effects of monsoon rains in India:
India's agricultural activities are highly dependent on monsoon rains and billions of people's livelihoods depend, directly and indirectly, on monsoon rains. Without the monsoon rains, the Indian subcontinent would have been a desert.
Monsoon rains unite the Indian people by providing water to all the river basins.
Indian regional festivals are directly dependent on monsoon rains.
Monsoon winds bring heavy rains to the Himalayan foothills, northeastern states, and the Western Ghats, causing floods in the northern plains and low-lying areas along the Kerala coast.
Western Rajasthan, Gujarat, Ladakh, Central India, and the rainshadow zone Western Ghats receive less monsoon rainfall, making the region drought-prone.
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