Sowing of kharif crops has entered the final phase and sowing has been completed in 85% of the normal area, as per data compiled by farm ministry.
The total sown area as on 14th August, stands at 890.82 lakh hectare as compared to 863.61 lakh hectare at this time previous year. Cotton was sown under 10.9 million hectares, down from 11.7 million hectares sown during the same period in last year. This has been mainly due to less rainfall in parts of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, two major growing regions.
Among other crops, oilseeds were sown in 16.4 million hectares, up from 16 million hectares in the year-ago period. Pulses were planted in 9.7 million hectares, up from 8.7 million hectares sown during the same period in the previous year. Coarse cereals have been planted in 16.4 million hectares, up from 15.5 million hectares planted during the same period in the previous year. Rice, the main food grain grown during the kharif season, has been sown in around 30 million hectares, up from 28.8 million a year ago.