The delayed South-West monsoon withdrawal will benefit winter (rabi) crops , the sowing of which has kickstarted in pockets of Rajasthan, according to Agriculture Commissioner SK Malhotra.

The sowing of rabi crops — wheat, barley, gram, lentil, rapeseed, mustard and safflower — normally begins from October through February and harvesting starts from March.

“The crop yields are dependent on soil moisture and its availability to support plant growth. Because of departure rains, there is adequate soil moisture in some state to begin rabi sowing,” Malhotra said.

This year, the withdrawal of monsoon from most parts of India is almost a month behind the normal schedule of September 1.

Mustard coverage

With favourable soil conditions, farmers in Rajasthan have already started planting the mustard crop and sowing of other rabi crops will begin in the coming weeks, he said.

Stating that coverage of mustard will increase this year, Malhotra said last year, mustard acreage had declined by 4 lakh hectares as the crop did not get departure rains. “The situation, however, this year is more favourable,” he said.

In case of wheat, the official said farmers are still preparing their fields and normally its sowing begins early in areas having assured irrigation. The government has set a wheat production target of 100 million tonnes this year, as against 99.7 million tonnes achieved in 2017-18.

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