Monsoon dips again, cane crop may fall 20 pct

By Ratnajyoti Dutta

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's monsoon rains fell sharply last week, widening a seasonal deficit that may cut cane output by 20 percent, but reservoirs filled rapidly and boosted prospects of winter irrigation and power generation.

Rainfall in the week to Sept. 16 was 41 percent below average as the weather dried up after the week that the saw the heaviest showers of the season, data from the India Meteorological Department showed on Thursday.

The total rainfall deficit since the season began on June 1 widened to 21 percent from 20 percent on Sept. 9.

Deficient and uneven monsoon rains, so far the worst since 1972, have hit the cane crop, and the harvest may drop 20 percent from last year, a senior weather official said.

India's cane output would have fallen 30 percent if rains had not revived a month ago, said L.S. Rathore, head of the India Meteorological Department's Agromet division, which issues weather advisories for farmers.

September rainfall is important both to improve soil moisture for the wheat and rapeseed crops that will be sown after a month and to increase the water level in reservoirs, but heavy showers at this time of the year can hit cane harvesting.

The joint managing director of Bajaj Hindusthan, Kushagra Bajaj, told an Indian newspaper that India may import at least 6.5 million tonnes of sugar in 2009/10, higher than trade forecasts of 4.5 million tonnes.

Food Secretary Alka Sirohi said India's sugar stocks at the start of the new season in October would be 4 million tonnes, including imports.