Kharif sowing sees uptick amid favourable monsoon, cotton area drops by 9 percent

The ongoing Kharif season has seen a significant boost in paddy, pulses, and coarse grain sowing, driven by favorable monsoon conditions. According to the Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, paddy has been sown in 409.50 lakh hectares as of September 9, surpassing the five-year average of 401.55 lakh hectares and last year’s 393.57 lakh hectares.

Coarse grain sowing has also increased, reaching 188.72 lakh hectares compared to the average of 180.86 lakh hectares. Oilseed sowing is slightly ahead at 192.40 lakh hectares, above the normal average of 190.18 lakh hectares. However, cotton sowing has experienced a decline, dropping by over 9 percent compared to last year. 

Kharif crops have been sown in 1092.33 lakh hectares so far, reflecting a 2.15% increase from last year’s 1069.29 lakh hectares, though still below the average normal area of 1095.84 lakh hectares.

Pulses sowing has seen a significant rise, up by 7.5 percent to 126.20 lakh hectares, with the sowing of tur peas leading the surge. 45.78 lakh hectares sown so far, compared to 40.74 lakh hectares last year.  Moong sowing has also expanded to 35.06 lakh hectares, up from 31.05 lakh hectares last year. However, urad sowing is trailing at 30.02 lakh hectares, down from 31.71 lakh hectares in the same period last year. Other pulses have been sown in 4.45 lakh hectares, slightly higher than last year's 4.17 lakh hectares.

Coarse grains saw a 3.84 percent increase in sowing, reaching 188.72 lakh hectares. up from 181.74 lakh hectares at the same time last year. Among coarse grains, jowar has been sown in 15.18 lakh hectares, ragi in 10.78 lakh hectares, maize in 87.27 lakh hectares and millet in 69.81 lakh hectares. Bajra is the only coarse grain with a lower sowing area compared to last year.

Sowing of oilseeds has seen a marginal rise of 1.56 percent, with 192.40 lakh hectares sown so far, compared to 189.44 lakh hectares last year. Groundnut has been sown in 47.49 lakh hectares, soybean in 125.11 lakh hectares, sunflower in 0.74 lakh hectares, and sesame in 10.95 lakh hectares. Only sesame has seen a decline in sowing.

Cotton sowing has declined by 9.12 percent, dropping from 123.39 lakh hectares last year to 112.13 lakh hectares. Sowing of jute and mesta also reduced to 5.71 lakh hectares. On the other hand, sugarcane sowing saw a slight increase to 57.68 lakh hectares.