Monsoon rainfall, which so far reported an 8 per cent cumulative shortfall, does not seem to have affected the ongoing kharif season with planting registering a marginal 0.72 per cent increase over the previous season, according to official sowing data released by the Agriculture Ministry on Friday.

Area edges up

The sowing has been carried out over an area of 1,053 lakh hectares (lh) as against 1,046 lh covered in the corresponding week last year. Rice, oilseeds and sugarcane have reported a jump in acreage, while the planting of pulses and cotton is marginally lower. Coverage of coarse cereals is down by 3.71 per cent compared to last year.

Rice, cane up

At 383 lh, rice planting is 2.28 per cent higher than that reported in the same week last year. There is a 4.17 per cent increase in sugarcane cultivation with both Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra — the two major growing States — reporting an additional area of 3.73 lh and 1.82 lh respectively.

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Among oilseeds, soyabean is inching towards a record cropping area with 112.50 lh covered so far, which 6.37 per cent higher than that in the same period last year. Groundnut cultivation, on the other hand, is down by 2.88 per cent to 40 lh.

Increase in arhar/tur and moong area, up by 0.86 per cent and 7.50 per cent respectively, has made up for the 8.8 per cent shortfall in urad cultivation.

Cotton sowing has gathered momentum the shortfall has been reduced to a mere 0.35 per cent.

All major coarse cereals, including bajra and ragi, have reported lesser planting this time, while maize held on to last year’s acreage.

Rain deficit data

According to the India Meteorological Department, nearly 39 per cent of districts in the country are reporting deficient to large deficient rainfall during the four-month South-West monsoon season which technically comes to an end by this month.

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