Monsoon to hit India early, boost rice output

By Mayank Bhardwaj

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's annual monsoon rains, vital to its economy, are forecast to reach southern India a few days early, the government said, bringing cheer to rice exporters, who said good rains would end panic in the market.

Farmers in India sow rice, soybean and groundnut in June and July. The monsoon usually hits Kerala on June 1 and retreats in September.

"The onset over Kerala in 2008 is likely to be on May 29 with a model error of four days," the weather office said in a statement.

It said the south-west monsoon advanced into the Bay of Bengal and the north Andaman Sea on May 12, almost eight days in advance.

Rice exporters in India, who have petitioned the government to ease restrictions on basmati rice exports, were jubilant.

"It is a superb news. The whole panic of rice shortage will end," Anil K Mittal, chairman and managing director of KRBL Ltd, a leading rice exporter told Reuters.

Farmers depend heavily on monsoon rains as only 40 percent of the cultivable land is irrigated.

"Good monsoon will lead to better yield in rice," said Vijay Setia, president of the All India Rice Exporters' Association.