The annual monsoon rains have arrived at Kerala's coast on Tuesday, a top weather official said, brightening the prospects of higher farm output as farmers can plant summer-sown crops such as rice, soybean and cotton on time. It has been raining in Kerala for the past few days, but the parameters suggest that the monsoon has arrived today. The annual rains are crucial for farm output and economic growth.

India is the world's second-biggest producer of rice, wheat, sugar and cotton and also one of the largest consumers, with a population of about 1.2 billion.