"Due to a substantial increase in acreage under cultivation coupled with good weather, the output should cross 66 million tonnes and might even touch 67 million tonnes," he said.

Talking to reporters after inaugurating a meeting of the heads of various co-operative societies here, Sompal said weather held the key to the final yield level.

The agriculture ministry is pinning hopes on a bumper wheat crop to achieve a record in the foodgrain output during 1998-99 surpassing the 200 million tonnes mark.

Last year the rabi wheat output according to government estimate was 63.5 million tonnes though independent estimates had put it a notch high at 69 million tonnes.

Agriculture secretary Kamal Pandey said there was a shift in area under cultivation from hoarse cereal and potato to wheatin Maharashtra and some of the northern states.

"While there was a substantial shift in acreage from hoarse cereal to wheat in Maharashtra, the damage to potato crop following untimely rains has led to diversion of area from this crop to wheat," Pandey said.

Sompal said the total foodgrain output during the rabi season could be equal to the kharif output of 101 million tonnes.

"The yield during the rabi season is expected to match the kharif levels," he said.

The kharif foodgrain output is estimated to be 101.03 million tonnes with the rice production accounting for nearly two thirds of the total output at 70.75 million tonnes.

Pandey said the agriculture ministry had not yet made any estimate of the area under wheat cultivation as sowing in some parts of the country was still on.

He said the dropsy and the subsequent ban on mustard oil had not cast any shadow over the mustard crop prospects as area under cultivation was `satisfactory'.

Though the agriculture ministry is upbeat about a recordfoodgrain output at a growth rate of over three per cent this year, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) has projected a growth of only 1.2 per cent at 194 million tonnes.

Government had last month announced a minimum support price of Rs 550 a quintal for wheat, which is 40 per cent increase over the previous year.