Sowing of key kharif crops – rice, pulses, oilseeds and cotton – seems lagging with overall sown area being 35.08 million hectare (Mha) as on Monday, down 21% year-on-year.
According to the Agriculture Ministry, total sowing was about 32% of the normal area of 110 mha in that window. By the same time a year ago, more than 40% of the normal area had come under fresh crops.
Rice, the major kharif crop, has been sown in 6 Mha, a 13% decline, indicating scanty rainfall in the eastern parts of India especially in Bihar and Jharkhand. Normal paddy sown area is 41.2 Mha.
Similarly, area under pulses has been 3.71 Mha, a sharp 22% year-on-year fall mostly attributed to the scanty rainfall received till end of June in central India. Tur (pigeon pea), a key kharif pulse has been sown in 1.23 Mha so far, over 40% less than the year-ago period because of deficient rainfall received in Maharashtra and Karnataka this monsoon season.
Due to the ‘active’ phase of monsoon during the past week over the rain-fed core zone of central India, the deficit in the region has been reduced to just 5% from over 50% reported till the end of June. This is expected to give a boost to pulses and oilseeds sowing in coming weeks.
Cotton acreage is 23% lower at 6.31 Mha year-on-year. Oilseeds – soybean and groundnut – area is lagging sharply by 35% year-on-year due to scanty rainfall in the central India region especially in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh last month. An official said that kharif crop sowing will sharply increase during the next few weeks as the monsoon is expected to be in active mode for the next few days.
Sugarcane planting, which started much earlier but is considered part of the kharif season, is the only major crop showing a rise in area,
Surplus rainfall of over 41% in July has reduced overall southwest monsoon deficiency in the current season till Monday to 20% from close to 40% at the end of June, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
Cumulative rainfall during June 1-July 6 according to the met department is 170.7 millimeters, 20% below the benchmark longer period average (LPA), which is still in the ‘deficient’ range. In terms of regional distribution, all regions show a serious rainfall deficiency: northwest (-19%), east/north-east (-41%), central India (-5%), and south peninsular (-15%).
However, IMD last week forecast ‘below-normal’ rainfall of less than 94% of the benchmark long period average (LPA)” for July, citing El Nino conditions evolving over the Pacific Ocean.