Rabi Sowing

Estimates 4% increase in wheat output, around 1% for chana, and 7% for mustard

Nano-fertilisers will improve efficiency

The area covered under chana (gram), which is the biggest pulses grown in the rabi season, was around 11.2 mn hectares, which was 1.8% less than last year but 13.36% more than the normal area

Area sown to wheat has increased by less than one per cent to 332.16 per hectare (ha) so far in the ongoing rabi season of the 2022-23 crop year (July-June), as per the agriculture ministry data released on Friday. Sowing of wheat, the main rabi (winter) crop, had begun from October onwards. Maize, jowar, gram and mustard are other major rabi crops. Harvesting of these crops will begin in March/April next year. According to the latest data, farmers have sown wheat in 332.16 lakh ha till January 6 of the current rabi season of the 2022-23 crop year (July-June) against 329.88 lakh ha during the same period last year. Higher coverage was reported from Rajasthan (2.52 lakh ha), Uttar Pradesh (1.69 lakh ha), Maharashtra (1.20 lakh ha), Gujarat (0.70 lakh ha), Chhattisgarh (0.63 lakh ha), Bihar (0.44 lakh ha), West Bengal (0.10 lakh ha), Jammu & Kashmir (0.06 lakh ha) and Assam (0.03 lakh ha), it added. Besides, the area sown to rice has also increased to 21.29 lakh ha till January 6 of

Wheat acreage has increased by 25 per cent so far in the onging rabi season at 255.76 lakh hectares mainly on higher sowing area in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the government data showed. The area under coverage for wheat, which is the major crop in rabi (winter-sown) season, stood at 203.91 lakh hectares in the same period last year. Sowing of rabi crops starts from October. Higher area has been reported from Uttar Pradesh (20.09 lakh hectares), Madhya Pradesh (13.48 lakh hectares), Rajasthan (5.32 lakh hectares), Gujarat (2.61 lakh hectares), Maharashtra (2.43 lakh hectares), Bihar (2.24 lakh hectares), Punjab (1.32 lakh hectares) and Haryana (1.28 lakh hectares). Increase in wheat sowing area augurs well for the country as the domestic production had fallen to 106.84 million tonnes in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June) from 106.84 million tonnes in the previous year. In May this year, the government banned exports of wheat to boost domestic supplies and control prices. Whe

Area sown to wheat has increased by 5.36 per cent annually to 211.62 lakh hectares in the first two months of the ongoing rabi (winter) season, with higher coverage being reported in Rajasthan, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, according to the agricultural ministry data released on Friday. Sowing of wheat, the main rabi crop, begins in October and harvesting in March-April. Besides wheat, rice and pulses, such as gram, urad as well as oilseeds such as groundnut and mustard are also grown in this season. According to the ministry's latest data, wheat has been sown in 211.62 lakh hectares so far in the current rabi season as against 200.85 lakh hectares in the year-ago period. Higher area has been sown in Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab. Area sown to rice has increased marginally to 10.62 lakh hectares as on December 2 of the ongoing rabi season as against 9.53 lakh hectares in the same period last year. Pulses acreage has also increased ...

The government expects "good" production of agriculture crops in the ongoing rabi (winter-sown) season on the back of higher sowing area and favourable soil moisture condition, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said on Saturday. Tomar held a meeting with senior officials of the ministry to take stock of the rabi crops position, according to an official statement. He highlighted that sowing area in rabi season is up 24.13 lakh hectares so far as compared with the year-ago period. Tomar expressed satisfaction that area coverage reported under wheat is 152.88 lakh hectares so far as compared to 138.35 lakh hectares in the corresponding period of last year "For wheat, there is an increase in area coverage by 14.53 lakh hectares over last year and this has been the highest ever since last four years," the statement said. As on November 25, total area sown under rabi crops reported was 358.59 lakh hectares (which is 57 per cent of the normal rabi area) as compared to 334.46 lakh

Usually wheat is sown in around 30.5 million hectares of which so far around 15.28 million is already sown

The Centre on Friday said there is adequate availability of key fertilisers, including urea and DAP, across the country for the ongoing rabi season, rejecting reports of shortage in Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. "There have been some media reports claiming shortage of fertilizers in Trichy, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. Such reports are beyond the facts," the Fertiliser Ministry said in a statement. It is clarified that there is more than adequate availability of fertilizers in the country to meet the needs of the ongoing rabi (winter) season, it said. The central government is sending fertilizers as per need to all states, and it is the responsibility of respective state governments to ensure availability within the states through proper intra-district and inter-district distribution, it added. According to the ministry, urea requirement is projected at 180.18 lakh tonne for the 2022 rabi season. The pro rata requirement up to November 16 was 57.40 lakh tonne against which the government

BKU leader Rakesh Tikait here on Sunday said he will not allow trials of genetically modified (GM) Mustard proposed by the central government. Addressing the mahapanchayat of farmers near Ghungroo intersection of Jhalwa, Tikait said, "The Ministry of Science and Technology has approved the trial of GM mustard. Preparations are being made to conduct trials at two places, Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh and Bharatpur in Rajasthan. We will not allow the trial, neither in Uttar Pradesh nor in Rajasthan." The Bhartiya Kisan Union leader said that there was no reason why the GM Mustard should be allowed into the country after objections from scientists from several countries. "When something is banned in the whole world, we have reports of 400 scientists, we have bad results of BT cotton cultivation, then what is the need for the Indian government to allow the cultivation of GM mustard. Is there a shortage of mustard in the country?" he said. Tikait claimed there will not be a dearth of cr

Mustard is usually sown in 6.4 million hectares, and sowing in almost 4.6 million hectares is complete till Friday

The plea stated that the modified seeds can contaminate non-GM mustard crops and that the sowing of such seeds should be put on hold

The government on Wednesday approved a subsidy of Rs 51,875 crore for phosphatic and potassic (P&K) fertilisers for second half of 2022-23 as part of efforts to provide affordable soil nutrients to farmers. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) rates for P&K fertilisers for 2022-23 rabi season, an official statement said. The CCEA has approved a subsidy of Rs 98.02 per kg for nitrogen (N), Rs 66.93 per kg for phosphorus (P), Rs 23.65 per kg for potash (K) and Rs 6.12 per kg for sulphur (S), it said. "Subsidy approved by the Cabinet for the NBS Rabi-2022 (from 01.10.2022 to 31.03.2023) will be Rs 51,875 crore including support for indigenous fertiliser (SSP) through freight subsidy," the statement said. This will enable smooth availability of all P&K fertilisers to farmers during the rabi season at subsidized / affordable prices and support the agriculture sector, it said. "The ...

An official clarification made later says approval has come from GEAC, which is authorised to do so, and not from MoEF

Government agri-research body ICAR can conduct field demos and trials of the recently approved GM-mustard hybrid DMH-11 this rabi season and make it available for commercial use within three years, top officials of agri think-tank NASS and TASS said on Monday. On October 25, the environment ministry approved the "environment release" of transgenic mustard hybrid DMH-11 and the parental lines containing barnase, barstar and bar genes so that they can be used for developing new hybrids under the supervision of The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Addressing a joint press conference, National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NASS) President Trilochan Mohapatra and Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS) Chairman R S Paroda said the environment release of DMH-11 is a "landmark decision" breaking a long logjam on the release of GM food crops. The ICAR should be in a position to conduct field demonstrations and trials of DMH-11 in the next 10-15 days in key .

However, this year, traders and market sources are hopeful that there could be a 10-15 per cent rise in wheat acreage

The government's decisions on MSP are often said to be driven also with an eye on food inflation

Harvesting of paddy has been delayed in the main states of Punjab, Haryana, UP and even Madhya Pradesh because of late withdrawal of southwest monsoon which has left the fields wet

Wheat is usually sown in around 31 million hectares, mostly in the northern belt

Expecting early sowing of winter crops in states that witnessed poor and erratic rains in the kharif season, the Centre on Thursday said it will distribute seeds minikits of pulses and oilseeds in those states. Normally, sowing of rabi (winter) crops begins from October and continues till mid-November, after harvesting of kharif (summer) crops. According to the agriculture ministry, the erratic and deficit rainfall in some states during this kharif season has necessitated the need for early sowing of rabi crops especially pulses and oilseeds. The government's focus is also to provide seed minikits of pulses and oilseeds targeting monsoon deficit regions in the states apart from the regular distribution, it said in a statement. The minikits are being provided by central agencies such as National Seeds Corporation (NSC) and NAFED and the distribution is funded by the central government through the National Food Security Mission. To promote pulses sowing, the government has allocated