Adequate and timely progress of southwest monsoon has given a boost to sowing of onion and other horticultural crops like tomato and potato in the kharif season, the government said on Friday.
It stated that the area targeted for kharif sowing of major vegetables – onion, tomato and potato –have been “significantly higher” than the previous year.
The government has set a target of 0.36 million hectare (MH) for kharif onion this year, which is 27% more than 0.28 MH reported in 2023. So far, onion has been sown in 61,700 hectare mostly in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh so far and sowing is expected to continue till the end of next month.
“In Karnataka, the top kharif onion producing state, sowing is completed in 30% of its targeted area of 0.15 MH and sowing is making good progress in other major producing states,” according to an official note.
Kharif crops account for 30% of the total annual onion production and the harvest plays an important role in maintaining price stability during the ‘lean’ months between rabi and peak kharif arrivals, the note stated.
An official said that the estimated rabi output, which constitutes 70% of annual onion output, of 19.1 million tonne (MT), is sufficient to meet the domestic consumption of about 1.7 MT a month till Kharif crops start arriving in the market by October end.
Modal retail prices have risen to Rs 40/kg on Friday from Rs 20/kg a year ago because of lower rabi harvest. Retail inflation in onion in May was 38% on year
The official statement comes following reports of a spike in prices of key vegetables mainly onion, tomato and potato compared to previous month. Official note stated that while potato is essentially a rabi or winter crop, the area under kharif potato this year is targeted to increase by 12% over last year which would augment supplies during September – November.
The statement noted that 27.32 million tonne (MT) of potato from the rabi harvest had been stored in cold storage this year, which is sufficient to meet the consumption demand. Modal retail potato prices were Rs 35/kg on Friday against a price of Rs 20/kg prevailed a year ago. The rise in retail prices of potatoes last month was 55.43% on year.
The agriculture ministry has stated potato production in 2023-24 season is estimated to decline marginally to 58.88 MT from a record 60.14 MT in the previous year because of ‘decrease in output’ in West Bengal.
The targeted kharif tomato area this year is projected at 0.27 MH as against 0.26 MH sown last year. “Crop conditions are reported to be good in major producing areas of Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh and Kolar in Karnataka,” the note stated.
While overall monsoon rains till Friday since its onset over Kerala coast on May 30 have been just 1.8% below the benchmark – long period average or in the ‘normal’ range. While regionwise the rainfall so far is below the benchmark in northwest (-7.9%), east and northeast (-1%) and central India (-7%), surplus rainfall of 11.9% in the south peninsula against the benchmark has given a boost to several kharif crops paddy, pulses, oilseeds, onion and tomato.