Incessant rain stokes crop damage fear in MP, Vidarbha

For a change, farmers in the central and Vidarbha regions of the country are hoping for less of rain.

With the southwest monsoon continuing a record-breaking run over most of India, except the eastern part, the region in question is apprehensive of damage to the standing soybean crop. The Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh, along with Vidarbha in Maharashtra, produces almost 80 per cent of the country's total soybean crop.

Till end of July in MP, soybean was sown on around 6.2 million hectares, 7.5 per cent more than last year at this time and 16 per cent more than the normal area. In Maharashtra, soybean had been sown in 3.8 mn ha till last Thursday, 25 per cent more than in the same period last year and 31 per cent more than the normal area (measured as the average area covered in the past five years). Annually, India produces 10-14 mn tonnes of soybean, 30-40 per cent of its total oilseed production. Lower output would mean India's dependence on import of edible oils could escalate. "As of now the situation is not very worrisome and the good thing is that rainfall intensity is gradually coming down over central India. But, if it revives with the same intensity in the next few days, then the damage can be more," a senior official said.

There are reports from in Kerala of risk to the cardamom and pepper crops due to waterlogging in plantations. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) says rainfall between June 1 and August 3 in west Madhya Pradesh (the soybean growing region) and Vidarbha was 96 more than the normal. Overall, across the country, rainfall during the same period was 17 per cent above normal. Rain is expected to remain normal in August and September as well, says IMD. In other crops, sowing has been satisfactory, with a little over 80 per cent of the total area covered normally in the kharif season already done by the first week of August. Usually, kharif crops are sown on 107 mn ha every year. Sowing is complete so far in 82 mn ha, about 11.6 per cent more than in the same period last year.