Rice has been sown in 55.40 lakh hectare so far, as per the preliminary data received from the Ministry of Agriculture. Besides, sugarcane has been planted in 52.78 lakh hectare while cotton has been planted in 46.61 lakh hectare.
Similarly, coarse cereals and oilseeds have been planted in 21.95 lakh hectare and 26.55 lakh hectare respectively, while raw jute has been planted in 8.17 lakh hectare. Separately, pulses have been sown in 13.04 lakh hectare.
Sowing of pulses has picked up and compared to this time, last year pulses have been sown in additional 66 thousand hectares while sugarcane and cotton has been sown in 2.52 lakh hectare and3.78 lakh hectare more respectively. However, sowing of rice, coarse cereals and oilseeds is lagging behind.
On June 29, 2012, the Agriculture Ministry had reported progress in sowing of Kharif crops whereby rice was sown in 30.72 lakh hectare while sugarcane had been planted in 52.22 lakh hectare.