Rabi sowing starts better than last year; but wheat sowing yet to begin

Harvesting of paddy has been delayed in the main states of Punjab, Haryana, UP and even Madhya Pradesh because of late withdrawal of southwest monsoon which has left the fields wet

The sowing of rabi crops continued at their steady pace as farmers hurried to make the best use of the residual soil moisture owing to rain in October.

However, wheat sowing is yet to start due to a delayed harvest of paddy in the northern states.

Paddy harvesting has been delayed in the main states of Punjab, Haryana, UP and even Madhya Pradesh because of the late withdrawal of the southwest monsoon, which has left the fields wet.

Post-monsoon rain in India between October 1 and 21, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), was almost 73 per cent more