According to the Agriculture Ministry's latest review of rabi season sowing trends, released on this Friday (04/12/09), so far 167.36 lakh hectares (lh) area has been planted under wheat this year, which is more than the 162.40 lh covered during this period last year.
Much of this increase is, however, on account of M.P., where farmers have stepped up acreage from 15.24 lh to 25.04 lh. On the other hand, wheat area is trailing in the high-yielding granary region of Punjab (31.21 lh versus 33.03 lh), Haryana (21.60 lh versus 22.44 lh) and Rajasthan (9.50 lh versus 10.60 lh).
Cumulative sowing is also lower this time in Uttar Pradesh (60.33 lh versus 62.11 lh) and Gujarat (3.71 lh versus 4.65 lh), while being marginally higher in Maharashtra (3.40 lh versus 3.04 lh), Bihar (2.72 lh versus 2.47 lh) and Karnataka (2.52 lh versus 2.11 lh).
As far as MP is concerned, the excellent spell of post-monsoon showers have seemingly played a part in boosting plantings, whereas in U.P., the delayed harvesting of cane due to standoff between growers and sugar mills – is seen as a reason for lagging wheat coverage.
Farmers in M.P. have responded to the improved soil moisture conditions by not only sowing more wheat, but also bringing more area under rabi pulses such as gram (30.35 lh versus 25 lh), lentil (6.33 lh versus 4.95 lh), peas (2.55 lh versus 2.24 lh), and oilseeds such as rapeseed-mustard (8.85 lh versus 7.61 lh) and linseed (1.72 lh versus 1.39 lh).
UP, too, has reported expanded acreages under rapeseed-mustard (12.79 lh versus 8.45 lh), gram (8.63 lh versus 8.49 lh), lentil (6.42 lh versus 5.97 lh) and barley (1.87 lh versus 1.49 lh), while recording a decline in peas (3.47 lh versus 4.44 lh).
In fact, if one leaves out UP and MP, the overall coverage of rabi crops so far this year would work out lower in most of the states relative to sowing in the corresponding period of last year.
This is especially apparent in Rajasthan that is the country's main rapeseed-mustard growing state. This time, farmers there have sown only 22.22 lh under the crop, against last year's progressive acreage of 27.48 lh. Rajasthan has also seen a decline in area under gram (4.57 lh versus 7.26 lh) and barley (1.95 lh versus 2.47 lh).
Another State that is witnessing lower rabi sowing activity is Karnataka, where area has fallen in sunflower (3.34 lh versus 5.03 lh), safflower (0.59 lh versus 0.62 lh), lentil (1.03 lh versus 1.16 lh) and jowar (10.41 lh versus 11.48 lh), while there was some relief for gram (9.98 lh versus 7.98 lh). Maharashtra, too, has registered declines under jowar (28.20 lh versus 32.32 lh), gram (7.12 lh versus 7.38 lh), sunflower (1.18 lh versus 1.23 lh) and safflower (1.672 lh versus 1.79 lh).
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