Kharif

Punjab sees 12.58% growth in basmati cultivation area during kharif season

The Punjab government's crop diversification drive has helped the state increase basmati cultivation area by 12.58 per cent during this kharif season, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian said on Sunday. The cultivation of long-grain rice has expanded to 6.71 lakh hectares currently, a significant increase from 5.96 lakh hectares during the previous kharif season, the minister said. Giving district-wise statistics of basmati cultivation, Khudian said that Amritsar led the way with 1.46 lakh hectares dedicated to this aromatic rice. Following Amritsar were Muktsar with 1.10 lakh hectares, Fazilka with 84.9 thousand hectares, Tarn Taran with 72.5 thousand hectares, and Sangrur with 49.8 thousand hectares, showcasing maximum basmati cultivation in these districts. The state agriculture minister also highlighted a substantial 46.5 per cent growth in the area under Direct Seeding of Rice (DSR) compared to the previous year. The area cultivated using the ...

Kharif sowing over in Rajasthan, all eyes on sky as rain may queer pitch

70% of guar comes from Rajasthan, rain may hit the crop

Kharif sowing keeps lead over 2023 tally in fillip to inflation battle

Data showed that till August 9, kharif crops had been sown in around 98 million hectares, 1.39 per cent more compared to the same period last year

Kharif sowing up 2.3% at 81.18 million hectares from last year, shows data

Kharif sowing of all crops is over in almost 74 per cent of the normal area, which is the average area covered in the last five years

Kharif sowing over in 64% of normal area till July 19, shows data

Normal area is the average area for the last five years

Govt aims to cover 25% of kharif paddy area with climate-resilient seeds

In a bid to combat the growing challenges posed by climate change, the government is targeting to bring 25 per cent of the total kharif paddy area under climate-resilient seeds, a senior agriculture ministry official said on Monday. The move comes as erratic rainfall patterns have become increasingly common in recent years, threatening rice production in the country. India, the world's second-largest rice producer after China, cultivates paddy on over 410 lakh hectares during the kharif season. Speaking on the sidelines of ICAR's 96th Foundation and Technology Day celebrations, ICAR Director General Himanshu Pathak said, "While we have achieved 75 per cent coverage of climate-resilient seeds in wheat cultivation, the adoption in paddy is still limited." Pathak revealed that ICAR has developed paddy seeds resistant to drought and lodging. These seeds were sown in 16 per cent of the total paddy area during the 2023 kharif season. "For the ongoing kharif season, we aim to increase th

Agricultural input companies see demand surge as sowing gathers pace

Kharif plantation till July 5 over 14% higher than area covered during the same period last year

India likely to experience 'above-normal' rainfall in July, says IMD

A strong kharif output particularly that of pulses and oilseeds is likely to help the government in its fight against inflation

Himachal sets target of producing about 970,000 metric tons of kharif crops

The Himachal Pradesh agriculture department has fixed a target of producing about 9.70 lakh metric tonnes of Kharif crops this season. The agriculture department has set a target of sowing maize, paddy, ragi, pulses and other food grains on 368 lakh hectares of cultivable land in the Kharif season, an official spokesperson said on Sunday. The maximum target of sowing maize has been set on 272 lakh hectares of land. Similarly, paddy is to be sown on 73 thousand hectares, pulses on 18 thousand hectares and food grains like ragi on 12,700 hectares in the Kharif season, the spokesperson said. Apart from this, a target has been set to cultivate vegetables in 87 thousand hectares and ginger in 3 thousand hectares, but due to lack of timely rain till June 19, sowing was slow in the state. Most of the farming in Himachal is rain dependent but every year in the Kharif season, a target for the production of food grains and vegetables is set by the agriculture department. This time the ...

Minister Chouhan calls for timely input supplies ahead of kharif season

Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday emphasised the need to ensure timely availability of fertilizers, seeds, and pesticides for the upcoming kharif crop season starting in July, pitching for constant monitoring to avoid any supply disruptions for farmers. Reviewing preparedness for the kharif (summer) season, which includes the sowing of crops like paddy with the onset of southwest monsoon rains, Chouhan directed officials to ensure quality input supplies and timely distribution, an official statement said. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted an above-normal southwest monsoon this year, a positive sign for the agriculture sector. Chouhan also stressed the need for increased farm mechanisation and adoption of technology to boost productivity. He called for linking agricultural education with farming practices to better utilise the skills of those with higher education in agriculture sciences. The minister urged intensive discussions to improve t

Tripura to purchase 40,000 MT paddy from farmers at MSP during kharif

This paddy will be purchased from 49 paddy purchasing centres in the state. Paddy will be purchased from December 11

Punjab expecting bumper paddy yield despite kharif season marred by floods

Punjab is expecting a bumper output of paddy crop despite kharif season 2023-24 being marred by floods during July and August, officials said. The state, known as the food bowl of the country, is expecting paddy output to cross 205 lakh metric tonne with an average yield going up by more than four quintal per hectare as compared to last year. We are anticipating the paddy production to cross 205 lakh MT this year, said Punjab Agriculture department Director Jaswant Singh. The state had achieved 205 lakh MT output in 2022-23. It had achieved the highest output of 208 lakh MT in 2020-21. The latest crop cutting experiments conducted by the state agriculture department ensure the state's average yield at 69.39 quintal per hectare, which is 4.60 quintal more than the yield achieved last year. The increase in paddy yield comes despite the state seeing floods in July and August this year. The floods had wreaked havoc in many districts including Patiala, Sangrur, Rupnagar, Jalandhar, ...

Will the September uptick in rural economy sustain in future?

The uptick in monsoon rains in September after a dry August and improvement in kharif acreage seem to be the immediate plausible reasons for the improvement

Paddy sowing rises 4.3% in ongoing kharif season, shows govt data

The area under coverage for paddy has increased 4.33 per cent to 360.79 lakh hectares across the country in the ongoing kharif season as the lag in sowing narrowed in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, and Karnataka, according to official data released on Friday. Paddy, the main kharif crop, was sown in 345.79 lakh hectares in the year-ago period. About 80 per cent of the country's rice is grown during the kharif season, which is generally from June to September. As per the data from the agriculture ministry for the ongoing kharif season till August 18, paddy was sown in 24.80 lakh hectares in Odisha, 0.43 lakh hectares less that the year-ago period. Similarly, it was sown in 16.61 lakh hectares in Assam, down by 0.61 lakh hectares from the year-ago period. Paddy-sowing areas in Andhra Pradesh were at 8.29 lakh hectares till August 18, down by 1.53 lakh hectares from the same period of the previous year. However, pulse sowing was lagging behind as coverage was at 114.92 lakh hectares

Kharif sowing in Chhattisgarh touches 78% despite initial delay in monsoon

Of it, paddy sowing has been completed in about 88 per cent of the targeted area

87% sowing completed for Kharif season 2023 in Maharashtra: Official

Maharashtra agriculture commissioner Sunil Chavan on Thursday said 87 per cent of sowing for the Kharif season has been completed in the state. He also said fertilisers and seeds are fully available for farmers during the season. The total land area under sowing during Kharif season is 142 lakh hectares and a total of 123.78 lakh hectares have been covered, Chavan was quoted as saying in a release from the district information office here. He also said rainfall in the state between June 1 and July 31 was 570.50 millimetres, which is 106 per cent of the average rainfall of 538.50 mm. "Sowing has picked up in the state, especially of cotton, soybean, tur and replanting rice crops. As on July 31, soybean has been sowed on 46.72 lakh hectares, cotton on 40.84 lakh hectares, tur on 10.21 lakh hectares and paddy on 9.33 lakh hectares," he said. The release said 21.78 lakh kilograms of seeds are available for Kharif season 2023 against demand of 19.21 lakh kilograms, while 43.13 lakh met

Total kharif acreage tops last year's level for first time this season

A pick up in paddy sowing should ease some concerns on the inflation front that prompted a clampdown on exports this week

Top headlines: Rail freight's 1st dip after Covid, Kharif sowing falls 9%

Business Standard brings you the top headlines at this hour

Delayed rains cause for concern, but revival is on cards, say experts

'Panic not warranted'; there have been years of poor June rain but good monsoon

Centre removes 40% procurement celling to boost production of pulses

Department of Consumer Affairs said the assured procurement of these pulses at remunerative prices will help motivate the farmers to enhance the sowing area in respect of tur, urad, and masur