Delayed monsoon 'hasn't impacted kharif crop'

The kharif crop is not likely to be affected by the delayed monsoon, a senior India Meteorological Department official told Crisil MarketWire.

"This is because the overall measure of rainfall would not be impacted by a late monsoon, and would get averaged out," another Met official said.

The monsoon lasts for about four months in India and the long-term average rainfall that the country gets is 88 cm.

"The earlier estimate of 98 per cent of average rainfall is maintained," said A B Majumdar, director, India Meteorological Department.

However, on the issue of further advancement of the monsoon, Majumdar said, "it has not progressed beyond the South Andaman Sea and Southeastern Bay of Bengal since Thursday."

The Met department has retained its earlier forecast that the monsoon will hit the Indian mainland in Kerala around a week late on June 7. The Met department Tuesday said that the monsoon is likely to hit the Southern Andaman sea in 48 hours.

Meanwhile, the government on Friday issued an advisory to farmers for using improved varieties of groundnut seed to boost productivity. It also suggested biological control methods to sugarcane growers for curbing the menace of woolly aphid pest and ensure a healthy crop.

Groundnut: Groundnut seed treatment with rhizobium and phosphate solubilising micro-organisms has been suggested in the advisory.

Treatment with micro organisms like carbendazin at the rate of 2 grams per kilogram of seed or mancozeb at the rate of 3 gm a kg or trichoderma at 4 gm per kg seed for controlling seed-borne fungal pathogens has been recommended.

Soil treatment with castor cakes is required at the rate of 500 kg per hectare for controlling pathogens, which cause stem and collar rots, the advisory said.

Spray of neem seed aqueous extract or crude neem oil has also been suggested for controlling foliar fungal diseases.

Experts have advised use of secondary and micro-nutrients for deficient soils.

Application of 10 kg of ZnSo4 (Zinc Sulphate) per hectare followed by foliar spray of 0.2 per cent in zinc deficient soils is suggested. Induction of Borax in the soil at the rate of 2.5-5.0 kg per hectare in Boron deficient tracts of Bihar and Karnataka to avoid impact of heat on the crop is recommended.

Application of ferrous sulphate in iron deficient soils of Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra has been detailed in the advisory. Sulphur has to be applied in addition to recommended fertilisers, in sulphur deficient soils, it added.

Experts have also advised to follow integrated pest management measures for diseases and pests control.

This includes ridge or broad bed furrow sowing and criss-cross method of planting for red soil areas of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and medium black soils of Maharashtra. Polythene mulching in summer for Tungabadhra river command areas of Karnataka, Kutch-Bhuj areas of Gujarat and many areas of Rajasthan is required, the advisory said.

Intercropping of groundnut with pigeon pea, sesame and castor under drylands is required, it added.

Sugarcane: The government has also advised to adopt micro-irrigation system in the states, which do not have sufficient water. This is because sugarcane is a water-guzzling crop.

Proper monitoring and management should be undertaken and biological control methods deployed for white woolly aphid pest particularly in Maharashtra and Karnataka.

CRISIL MarketWire reported last week of scientists having developed new strains of sugarcane, which are resistant to white woolly aphid pest.

Dipping of sugarcane saplings in hot water at 52 degrees for 1.5 to 2.00 hours followed by treatment with mercurial fungicides is helpful in obtaining a healthy crop, it said.

Application of 6.2 litre of gama benezene hexa chloride per hectare or chloropyriphos at the rate of 5 litre per ha by making a solution in 18 litre of water and its spray over the plants in furrows or trenches helps in tackling the problem of termites and borer.