The reporting period corresponds to the growing and harvesting seasons of rabi crops. Overall, the CropWatch indicators suggest crop condition for India is average during the reporting period. All the major rabi crop producing states experienced above average rainfall, including Andhra Pradesh (RAIN, +15%), Bihar (+52%), Gujarat (+340%),Haryana (+48%), Kerala (+33%), Karnataka (+26%), Maharashtra (+100%), Madhya Pradesh (142%), Orissa(+14%), Punjab (+20%), Rajasthan (+92%), Tamil Nadu(+11%), Uttar Pradesh (+85%), and West Bengal (+68%). High rainfall lead topositive biomass accumulation in these regions. Temperatures (TEMP) were average over the region, while PAR was below average in several statesincluding Bihar (RADPAR, -7%), Haryana (-6%), Himachal Pradesh (-9%), Jharkhand(-6%), Madhya Pradesh (-6%), Punjab (-7%), Uttar Pradesh (-8%), Uttarakhand(-9%), and West Bengal (-5%). Overall, however, weather conditions werefavorable and resulted in average crop condition, except in some regions where high unseasonal rainfall destroyed some rabi crops.

Crop condition development was generally comparable with the previous five year's average andnever reached the level of the previous five year’s maximum. Across the region,maximum VCI values ranged from below 0.5 to larger than 1.0. Low VCIx values ofbelow 0.5 were recorded in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, andHaryana, indicating poor crop condition in these areas. The NDVI values for the entire country reached favorable values during early January and starteddropping in early February. In northern and southern India, NDVI values increased gradually from early February to April, while in central India NDVIvalues decreased gradually from mid-January on forward. In Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh, NDVI underwent a marked drop in early March butrecovered in early April.

Figure3.16. India crop condition, January-April2015

(a)Crop condition development graph based on NDVI                                 (b)Maximum VCI

(c)Spatial NDVI patterns compared to 5YA                                               (d) NDVI profile