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Sowing of wheat crossed the physiological benchmark of 34 million hectares, while pulses coverage remained lower, according to the agriculture ministry data released on Friday.
The sowing of wheat, the main rabi (winter) crop that began in October, is complete. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Punjab are the top three states having the maximum area under wheat coverage.
Pulses have been sown in 15.51 million hectares in 2023-24 rabi season, down from 16.26 million hectares in the previous year. Area under gram, urad, and moong remained lower, the data showed.
Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda expressed hope that production is expected to be good this year due to higher coverage. “According to the sowing data, wheat has been covered in more areas and we expect good production this year,” Munda told PTI.
According to a PTI report, a senior agriculture ministry official said the crop was in good condition and there are no reports of any damage to the crop till date. “The current cold weather condition is good for the growth of wheat and other rabi crops,” he said.
Climate-resistant seeds have been sown in more than 70 per cent of the total wheat area covered in both Punjab and Haryana this year, he said.
The ministry has started issuing regular advisories to help farmers take care of the wheat crop after the completion of sowing.
In a related development, private weather forecasting agency Skymet in its latest analysis said initial trends show that southwest monsoon in 2024 could be normal and El Niño is expected to enter into a neutral phase from March. There is a possibility of an evolving La Niña during the second half of June to September monsoon season, it said.
Both the scenarios are considered positive for the Indian monsoon.
First Published: Jan 19 2024 | 9:06 PM IST
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