Paddy sown in just around 50% of normal area in Jharkhand till Sep 2

Most parts of India were likely to get normal to above normal rainfall in September, says IMD

The area covered under paddy, the biggest food grain grown during kharif season, has improved in the last few weeks. It has reached almost 90 per cent of the normal area in most monsoon-deficient states, making up for the lag since July.

In some states like Jharkhand, the sowing is still down and was just 50 per cent of normal area till September 2. With sowing about to end in almost all major growing states, there is little chance of any big improvement in acreage in places left behind.

Normal area is the average covered under a particular crop in