A delayed and deficient southwest monsoon has shrunk rabi sowing from last year’s level.
If sowing was taken up on 597.15 lakh hectares of land last year, the figure this time was 566.18 lakh hectares. What is worrisome is the gap of 30.97 lakh hectares between the areas sown in the previous week and its corresponding week last year, higher than the deficit of 26.82 lakh hectares when making such a comparison for the week earlier.
The southwest monsoon was 12 per cent lower than the long period average in the country and 21 per cent in northwest India, hitting kharif crop production by 2-3 per cent. The rain deficit is affecting rabi sowing now.
A meeting in the Agriculture Ministry to review the crop and weather situation noted that wheat has been sown in 4.92 lakh hectares less this year because of lower moisture in the soil. Although the area under wheat will be made up in the next few weeks, the harvest will depend on the weather conditions.
Of particular concern is the lower acreage of pulses. The area under gram is lower this year by 14.8 lakh hectares from last year’s because of the lower minimum support price. Farmers have turned away from sowing gram as the price is low, sources said.
The area under coarse cereals is lower by 4.57 lakh hectares mainly because of reduced sowing of maize and jowar in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.
OilseedsLikewise, the area under oilseeds is lower by 6.96 lakh hectares with rapeseed and mustard recording the largest shortfall of 4.59 per cent. Lower acreage is reported from Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Gujarat where the monsoon was deficient.
Rabi sowing begins in October and harvest in March.
