The total area sown under kharif crops across India during the current season is estimated at 1,086.31 lakh hectares as of September 4, compared to 1,104 lakh hectares in the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
The area under rice has declined to 421.82 lakh hectares from 438.19 lakh hectares last year, mainly due to a deficient monsoon influenced by the El Nino weather pattern. Significant decreases occurred in Karnataka, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra.
Conversely, pulses such as urad and moong have seen an increase to 117.13 lakh hectares, up by 1.83 lakh hectares from last year. This growth is largely due to higher plantings in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, offsetting reductions in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Odisha.
The sowing area for coarse cereals like jowar, bajra, and ragi slightly decreased to 181.39 lakh hectares from 182.48 lakh hectares last year, with declines mainly in Karnataka and Maharashtra, as well as Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. These losses were compensated by gains in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Uttarakhand.
Oilseed coverage dropped by 1.07 lakh hectares to 191.99 lakh hectares, attributed to reductions in Rajasthan and Gujarat, while Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh recorded increases.
sowing fell marginally to 58.47 lakh hectares this year from 58.87 lakh hectares before, with Bihar and Uttarakhand reducing area more than the gains seen in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
Cotton sowing also decreased to 109.17 lakh hectares against 109.87 lakh hectares last year, mainly due to reductions in Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab, balanced somewhat by increases in Telangana and Gujarat.
The area under jute and mesta rose marginally to 6.34 lakh hectares from 6.24 lakh hectares last year, supported by greater planting in Bihar and West Bengal, offsetting declines in Assam and Andhra Pradesh.