Despite demonetisation leading to a cash crunch in the economy, the sowing of Rabi crops in the season so far, at 415.53 lakh hectares, was 8.5 per cent greater than the 382.84 lakh hectares sown in the same period last year.

While acreage under wheat, pulses and oilseeds increased compared to the same period last year, rice and coarse cereals acreage declined.

Total sowing in the period, however, remained marginally below the normal five-year average of 416.66 lakh hectares for the same time-frame. “Last year was a drought year, so acreage was low.

Sowing this year

Comparing this year’s sowing to last the five years’ average gives a better picture. “Sowing has been only slightly lower than the previous five years’ average, which shows that demonetisation has had a limited impact so far,” an agriculture expert from a Delhi-based think tank said.

Sowing of wheat, over 173.93 lakh hectares till December 2, was higher than the 152.56 lakh hectares covered in the same period last year, but lower than the last five years’ average of 189.58 lakh hectares.

Higher coverage has been reported from Rajasthan, Bihar, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Haryana while there has been lower coverage in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal.

The area under pulses, at 112.95 lakh hectares, is higher than both last year’s acreage of 99.83 lakh hectare as well as the last five years’ average of 103.94 lakh hectares.

Higher acreage has been reported from Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, among others, while lower acreage has been reported from Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Haryana.

Oilseeds acreage till December 2 was at 70.70 lakh hectare, which was higher than the acreage of 64.21 lakh hectares in the same period last year and the last five years’ average of 69.32 lakh hectares.

Higher acreage was recorded in Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Assam while lower acreage has been reported in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.

Rice acreage till December 2, at 13.37 lakh hectares, was lower than last year’s acreage of 14.84 lakh hectares in the same period but higher than the last five years’ average of 9.44 lakh hectares. Higher coverage has been reported from Tamil Nadu and Odisha, while there was lower coverage in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala.

The area under coarse cereals, at 44.59 lakh hectares till December 2, was lower than last year’s coverage of 51.40 lakh hectares but marginally higher than the last five years’ average of 44.38 lakh hectares.

A larger area has been covered in States such as Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Himachal Pradesh, while acreage has gone down in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra.

Rabi sowing generally starts in October and goes on till January.

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