Kharif Sowings

As sowing of kharif (summer) crops almost comes to an end, paddy planting continued to lag behind as sown area under this crop fell 5.51 per cent from last year to 401.56 lakh hectare so far, according to the agriculture ministry. Besides paddy, there is marginal lag in sowing of pulses, oilseeds and jute/mesta. Consequently, the total sown area under kharif crops declined 1.24 per cent to 1,097.57 lakh hectares so far this kharif season, as against 1,111.36 lakh hectares in the year-ago period, it said. Sowing of kharif crops had begun with the onset of southwest monsoon from June. Harvesting of some kharif crops has started and will be in full swing from October. Releasing the latest sowing update, the agriculture ministry said area planted to paddy remained lower by 5.51 per cent at 401.56 lakh hectares (ha) so far this kharif season of the 2022-23 crop year (July-June), as against 425 lakh hectares in the year-ago period. Less coverage in paddy area was reported from Jharkhand

The restrictions were placed, because sowing has not been up to expectations on account of irregularities in rainfall

Data from Agriculture Ministry showed that as of July 15, the paddy sowing was down by 17.4% to 128.50 lakh hectares this Kharif season as against 155.53 LH in corresponding period of previous year

Experts say a fall in paddy output could hugely impact cereal prices going forward as wheat stocks in central pool aren't enough to quell any surge in prices

Till last week, area sown to total kharif crops was down 9.27 per cent at 406.66 lakh hectare as compared to the year-ago period.

IMD's latest update says active monsoon conditions over central India and along the west coast could continue for five days starting. It sees a rise in rainfall over Northwest India on July 9-10

Farmers might shift from soy, cotton and maize if rainfall doesn't improve sufficiently, analysts say

IMD accepted that actual rainfall in July and August was outside its forecast as the spread of low-pressure areas was uneven, though the total quantum was lower than last year

Acreage under rice, moong, ragi, groundnut, soybean, and nigerseed has seen the maximum increase

Oilseeds like groundnut and soyabean and other crops led by cotton are largely sown in Kutch and Saurashtra regions of Gujarat

The steady monsoon progress has spurred sowing of kharif crops and till last week, acreage was almost 21 per cent more than the same period last

In June, the first month of the season, rainfall over north India was 4 per cent above normal, which was the lowest among the four major subdivisions.

Agriculture was expected to be the only silver lining in the economy in the current financial year

In Haryana, demand has reached 8.5 Gw versus 9.4 Gw last year

India should have been better prepared for the locust invasion

Sowing on major crops likely to be over 100 per cent of three-year average

Barring a few areas that were affected by flooding due to torrential rains, agricultural dept officials say that overall the state has gained from the recent spell

Unlike in the previous years, both the states have received normal to excess rainfall from June till July 12