India has three cropping seasons -- Summer, Kharif, and Rabi. Crops sown during June-July and dependent on monsoon rains are harvested in October-November are Kharif.
India's Kharif crop sowing is progressing steadily, with farmers planting crops across 1,087.33 lakh hectares so far, a 1.91 per cent increase, as against 1,066.89 lakh hectares from the same period last year.
Pulses production in India has increased from 16.3 million tonnes during 2015-16 to 24.5 million tonnes during 2023-24, but the demand also went up to the tune of 27 million tonnes now.
Farmers in India have sown Kharif crops across 979.89 lakh hectares so far this year, as against 966.40 lakh hectares in the same period of last year, according to the latest data from the Agriculture Ministry.
Among the field crops, seeds of various cereals including millets, forage crops, oilseeds, pulses, sugarcane, cotton, fibre and other potential crops were released. Among the horticultural crops, different varieties of fruits, vegetable crops, plantation crops, tuber crops, spices, flower
The ongoing volatility in the prices of key food items such as tomatoes, onions, and potatoes (collectively known as TOP) and pulses continues to pose significant challenges for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), highlights a report by SBI.
Commodity-wise, paddy, pulses, oilseeds, millets, and sugarcane sowing have been higher year-on-year. Sowing for cotton and jute/mesta has, on the other side, declined.
The uncontrollable inflation in Pakistan is now severely affecting the daily lives of people, and essential food items, including vegetables and pulses, have become inaccessible to middle-class people.
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, expressed hope that government efforts to boost semiconductor manufacturing, domestic shipping and a reduction in imports of oilseeds, rubber, and pulses will help the rupee appreciate against the dollar.
The data also highlights that paddy crop has the highest sown area, reaching 166.06 lakh hectares this season, up from 155.65 lakh hectares last year. This increase shows the continued prominence of paddy in India's agricultural landscape.