Rabi sowing at an all-time high

According to data released by the farm ministry, sowing of rabi crops has crossed last year’s all-time-high area sown at over 65.2 million hectares so far.

After a bountiful kharif season because of a good monsoon, planting of rabi or winter-sown crops has expanded beyond the normal acreage, holding out hopes of a bumper harvest.

Area sown under wheat, rapeseed, mustard and gram has reached an all-time high, surpassing records, data shows.(Bijay/Hindustan Times representative image)

According to data released by the farm ministry, sowing of rabi crops has crossed last year’s all-time-high area sown at over 65.2 million hectares so far. This is higher than the normal acreage of 62 million hectares for the season and 1.6% higher compared to area sown a year ago.

Area sown under wheat, rapeseed, mustard and gram has reached an all-time high, surpassing records, data shows.

Wheat has been sown on 33.7 million hectares, surpassing last rabi season’s all-time high of 33.6 million hectares. Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra have shown an expanded area under wheat, making up for less area under wheat in Punjab, Rajasthan, UP, Bihar and Gujarat.

In Madhya Pradesh, the area under wheat has increased for three consecutive years, from 5.3 million hectares during 2017-18, to 6 million hectares during 2018-19 and 8 million hectares during 2019-20. This year, so far, the area cultivated under wheat in the state has increased further to 8.8 million hectares.

The area under coarse cereals has however lagged 8.2%, including under major rabi cereals like jowar, maize and barley.

The area cultivated under gram has surpassed last season’s all-time high area sown of 10.7 million hectares to stand at 10.9 million hectares because of higher plantings in Maharashtra and Gujarat. The area under rapeseed and mustard, the main winter oilseeds has increased by 6.7% to 7.3 million hectares. This is the highest ever area cultivated under rabi oilseeds. “Rajasthan so far has the largest area under rapeseed and mustard, accounting for 35-40% of the total area sown in India,” according to the Centre For Monitoring Indian Economy.