Crops cover 5 per cent more area than year ago

NEW DELHI: Crop planting this kharif season has so far covered nearly 5% more area than that at this time last year, with plentiful monsoon rains after two straight years of drought boosting farmer sentiment.

Pulses have seen the biggest expansion in acreage at 34%, raising expectations of a bumper harvest of the protein-rich food that has been a major contributor to food inflation in the past year or so.

Meanwhile, monsoon data showed rains were 3% below normal since June 1. Still, India’s 91 major reservoirs held 12% more water than at this time last year, suggesting better water availability for crops after the monsoon ends. At 102.147 billion cubic metres, these dams also held more water compared with the 10-year average.

Planting has been completed on 1,019.1 lakh hectares so far this Kharif season, compared with the government’s target of 1,062.50 lakh hectares.

Sugarcane planting fell 8% while that of cotton shrank nearly 9%. Other crops like coarse cereals, oilseeds and rice saw marginal increase.