Kharif sowing going on in full swing in Gujarat

Sowing operations are going on in full swing in Gujarat in the backdrop of good monsoon rains received by the state so far. File Photo

Sowing operations are going on in full swing in Gujarat in the backdrop of good monsoon rains received by the state so far.

Good rainfall has been reported from Vadodara, Surat, Chhotaudpur, Bharuch, Amreli, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Surendranagar, among other parts of Gujarat, in past one week, brining cheers to farmers, who have taken up large-scale kharif crop sowing.

For the second year in running, farmers have given up tobacco cultivation in favour of other kharif crops, sources in Agriculture Department said, quoting government data.

“As per the data available with the Agriculture Department, 24.65 lakh hectares of land has been covered under sowing this kharif season so far. This is nearly 1.62 lakh hectares more than the corresponding period in 2009,” Agriculture Minister Dilip Sanghani told PTI by phone.

“Though there was some delay in on-set of monsoon in the state, it has not affected kharif crop sowing.”

The kharif crops have been divided into categories of coarse, pulses, oilseeds and others. These include paddy, bajra, maize, tur, math, groundnut, soyabean, cotton, tobacco, fodder and guvar seed.

Coarse crops have been sown over 1,46,300 hectares, pulses 92,400, oilseeds 1,00,700 and other crops 12,1930 hectares in the state till now, the sources said.