• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

M.R. Subramani

Chennai, July 11

THE country may be headed for a record oilseeds and pulses crop during the current kharif season, going by the increase in the area covered under these crops.

"Going by the sowing trend in oilseeds and pulses, we could be headed for a bountiful harvest. Thanks to the monsoon coverage, this has been possible," official sources said.

Better returns to farmers for these crops last year and good monsoon this year were aiding the rise in area, farm industry sources said.

According to the Agriculture Ministry, 30 of the 36 meteorological divisions in the country received excess rainfall, while the weighted all-India average during the monsoon so far shows that rainfall has been six per cent higher as compared to the same period last year.

For the week ended July 4, the weighted average rainfall was 57 per cent higher than the same period last year.

Besides oilseeds and pulses, area under bajra and cotton has also increased.

According to the ministry, area under groundnut and soybean has more than doubled this kharif. While 20.85 lakh hectares (lh) have come under groundnut against 10.93 lh last year, the area covered under soyabean is 31.27 lh (11.40 lh). While area under sunflower has witnessed a decline of over 60 per cent to 0.47 lh, that under niger, castor and sesamum has gone up.

In the case of pulses, area under tur has increased to 8.63 lh (5.16 lh), while sowing of other pulses has almost trebled to 21.49 lh (7.29 lh).

As regards cotton, the area covered so far is 17.16 lh (14.05 lh) as against the normal area of 89 lh. Sowing in Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana has been completed, while it is in full swing in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Karnataka.

Area covered under jute and mesta has been unchanged at 7.5 lh, while sowing in sugarcane, as projected by the ministry, has declined to 39.6 lh (40.2 lh).

Area under bajra has increased to 13.82 lh (12.25 lh), while that under other coarse cereals has declined.

Sowing of rice is in full swing and the ministry expects it to gain momentum. Currently, it lags behind at 38.5 lh against 44.3 lh last year. The normal area under kharif is 406 lh.

The Ministry also said incidences of pest and diseases were under control.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
APCOB launches relief package for farmers

Copyright © 2003, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line