The Central government on Thursday, in the third advance estimate, said wheat production in the just concluded rabi season was expected to be even more than its initial estimate of February and would be around 112.74 million tonnes on the back of a sharp rise in acreage and higher yields.
In February’s second advance estimate, the Centre had projected the wheat crop to be around 112.18 million tonnes.
The latest numbers mean that according to the Centre’s assessment, there has been no impact of the unseasonal rain that hit the standing crop in North and Central India in March and April.
At that time several experts had said a minimum of 10 per cent of the crop had been damaged.
The upward revision in wheat production estimates for the 2022-23 crop season (July to June) is also somewhat surprising because wheat procurement by Central agencies has not progressed much beyond 26 million tonnes, which is almost 24 per cent less than the original target of 34.1 million tonnes.
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The purchases, though, are much higher than last year’s multi-year low procurement of around 19 million tonnes.
The disconnect between wheat production and the procurement numbers this season could mean that private traders have bought heavily this year. Their inventories are running low.
Meanwhile, among other main rabi crops, the official estimates show the production of chana (gram), which is the biggest among the pulses grown in the country, will be 13.54 million tonnes this year, which is the same as last year.
The production of mustard, the main oilseed grown during the rabi season, is projected at a record 12.49 million tonnes, which is 4.43 per cent more than last year.
