New Delhi: Farmers have already started preparing land for their kharif crop and raising paddy nurseries from where saplings will be transplanted to fields by the second week of June.
New Delhi: Farmers have already started preparing land for their kharif crop and raising paddy nurseries from where saplings will be transplanted to fields by the second week of June. With initial planting in full swing, especially in the north eastern and southern states, the agriculture ministry hopes to see around 106 million hectares under grain cultivation, the same as last year’s.
The government is yet to announce the minimum support price for kharif crops for this year, which would influence farmers in what they sow, said analysts who feel that the acreage under rice will see a slight increase. Similarly, soyabean, pulses and sugarcane area could surpass cotton in acreage as prices were firm and pest infestation in those crops was less.
Speaking to ET, Agriculture Secretary Shobhana K Pattanayak said they were expecting planting acreage to be similar to the previous year. “We expect to surpass last year’s production of 278.5 million tonnes and touch 283.7 million tonnes in 2018-19. Better preparation to face weather uncertainties, availability of quality seed and a good monsoon forecast will lead to increase in productivity and overall production,” he said.
“If weather remains good, farmers will go for paddy crop,” said Pattanayak. This year, the government has set a target to plant paddy on 40 million hectares compared to 37.1 million hectares last year. In 2017, the total area under kharif crops as of Sept 30 was 106.09 million hectare, compared with 106.58 million hectare in 2016. Prerana Desai, vice-president at Edelweiss Agriculture Value Chain, said farmers in Maharashtra and Telangana might not go for cotton due to pest infestation and opt for soyabean. Similarly, due to poor water availability, cotton acreage in Punjab and Haryana might drop.
“However, in Gujarat, farmers may shift to cotton from groundnut as the latter prices are not remunerative,” said Desai. Desai said with availability of good quality seed and improved yield, the drop in cotton acreage might not impact crop output.
“The government has been proactive in increasing duty ensuring good returns to oilseed crops. We expect cotton and pulses-tur farmers to shift to soyabean,” said Atul Chaturvedi, president of Solvent Extractors’ Association.
The government is yet to announce the minimum support price for kharif crops for this year, which would influence farmers in what they sow, said analysts who feel that the acreage under rice will see a slight increase. Similarly, soyabean, pulses and sugarcane area could surpass cotton in acreage as prices were firm and pest infestation in those crops was less.
Speaking to ET, Agriculture Secretary Shobhana K Pattanayak said they were expecting planting acreage to be similar to the previous year. “We expect to surpass last year’s production of 278.5 million tonnes and touch 283.7 million tonnes in 2018-19. Better preparation to face weather uncertainties, availability of quality seed and a good monsoon forecast will lead to increase in productivity and overall production,” he said.
“If weather remains good, farmers will go for paddy crop,” said Pattanayak. This year, the government has set a target to plant paddy on 40 million hectares compared to 37.1 million hectares last year. In 2017, the total area under kharif crops as of Sept 30 was 106.09 million hectare, compared with 106.58 million hectare in 2016. Prerana Desai, vice-president at Edelweiss Agriculture Value Chain, said farmers in Maharashtra and Telangana might not go for cotton due to pest infestation and opt for soyabean. Similarly, due to poor water availability, cotton acreage in Punjab and Haryana might drop.
“However, in Gujarat, farmers may shift to cotton from groundnut as the latter prices are not remunerative,” said Desai. Desai said with availability of good quality seed and improved yield, the drop in cotton acreage might not impact crop output.
“The government has been proactive in increasing duty ensuring good returns to oilseed crops. We expect cotton and pulses-tur farmers to shift to soyabean,” said Atul Chaturvedi, president of Solvent Extractors’ Association.