Sowing in the current kharif season has commenced in right earnest with an area of 54 lakh hectares (lh) brought under cultivation till Friday, according to data released by the Agriculture Ministry. A total of 55 lh was covered during the same period last year.

This is despite the fact that the total live storage capacity in 76 reservoirs used for irrigation stood at 22.66 billion cubic metre (bcm), which was 19 per cent of the total capacity. As per the data released by Central Water Commission on Thursday, the storage levels during the corresponding week last year stood at 23 per cent of the total capacity.

The India Meteorological Department, however, has forecast a normal monsoon this year, raising the hopes for a bountiful harvest, third time in a row.

Sugarcane which was planted over 47 lh accounted for much of the area covered so far. Significantly, the sugarcane acreage is marginally higher than 46.44 lh during corresponding period last year. The increase is surprising considering farmers are currently smarting under mounting sugarcane arrears as a bumper cane production last year and consequent glut in sugar production, pulled down the prices of the sweetener, prompting the Government to intervene. While the sugarcane sowing in Uttar Pradesh is pegged at 21.52 lh, in Maharashtra and Karnataka it was 8.75 lh and 4 lh respectively.

Jute and mesta, on the other hand, were sown over 5.44 lh as against 5.68 lh during the same period last year.

Much of the 1.09 lh under rice was reported from Assam, Mizoram and Tamil Nadu, the Agriculture Ministry data showed.

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