With paddy transplantation picking up across key producing States, sowing of kharif crops has seen a steady increase this week.
For the first time this season, paddy acreage has topped last year’s levels and stood at 335.18 lakh hectares against 333.79 lakh ha during the corresponding period a year ago. The acreage in paddy had been lagging due to delay and scanty rain in the first half of the four-month monsoon period.
Total kharif acreage stood at 935.06 lakh ha on Friday, compared with 975.87 ha in the year-ago period.
Besides paddy, cotton is the only other crop that has exceeded last year’s level in acreage. Cotton has been sown on 118.81 lakh ha against 111.34 lakh ha in 2013-14. Acreages of pulses, coarse cereals and oilseeds continued to lag last year’s levels. In the case of soyabean, the acreage was lower by about nine per cent at 109.03 lakh ha against previous year’s 120.32 lakh ha.
Soyabean planting, impacted by delayed monsoon and poor quality seeds, was lower in almost all major States, including Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan. However, in Karnataka soyabean has gained marginally.
Despite revival of rains in several parts of the country, the seasonal deficit till August 21 stood at 19 per cent. Water storage levels in 85 important reservoirs of the country as stood at 101.253 BCM (billion cubic metres), which is 65 per cent of total storage capacity of these reservoirs.
The present storage position during current year is less than storage position of last year but better than the average storage of last ten years, according to the Central Water Commission.