The progress of the southwest monsoon has been sluggish so far with cumulative rainfall until June 14 being just 28.4% below the benchmark longer period average (LPA) for the period. This is in the ‘deficient’ range, according to the India Meteorological Department’s criteria. This follows the late arrival of monsoon over Kerala on June 5 against the usual date of June 1. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday expressed concern over the impact deficient rains would have on farmers’ income as the IMD has officially forecast a below-normal monsoon for 2026. “Of course, we have enough buffer stocks. Since last year we’ve maintained it, so there shouldn’t be a food shortage.