Sowing better than last year`s

MONSOON WATCH

Area planted (lakh hectares)

Difference

This year Last year Rice55.9547.088.87 Maize26.4721.574.90 Total Coarse cereals66.6847.0419.64 Groundnut20.6719.341.33 Soyabean24.8222.072.75 Sunflower1.143.22-2.08 Total oilseeds50.0149.520.49 Tur (arhar)4.453.80.59 Total pulses20.0313.506.53 Cotton18.2320.31-2.08 Sugarcane42.8251.74-8.92 Jute8.667.031.63 Source: Agriculture ministry   Elsewhere, kharif sowing is on track. Seed germination and the crop stand in the early planted fields are reported to be good in most parts of the country.  The concern over the fate of the freshly sown crops is confined mainly to those pockets which witnessed a break in the rains after the initial spell.  On the whole, the sowing of most crops is ahead of last year's corresponding positions. The only exceptions are cotton, sugarcane, sunflower and jowar whose planting is lagging for various reasons.  While a part of the sugarcane area is reportedly being diverted to other crops, notably oilseeds and paddy, cotton sowing has been hit, especially in Andhra Pradesh and some parts of Rajasthan for want of adequate soil moisture.  The impact of the price drop in the wake of the import duty waiver on cotton is yet to be known. The revival of the monsoon in the wake of the fresh surge can facilitate cotton sowing in more areas.  A part of jowar acreage is believed to going to maize and bajra, both of which are fetching very attractive prices thanks to higher demand. Though the ban on maize exports has resulted in a marginal drop in its ruling prices, the continued heavy demand from the poultry and starch industries, coupled with high international prices, is expected to lend a good price support to this crop.  The farmers, therefore, seem quite keen on expanding maize acreage this year. Bajra sowing is also picking up as this coarse cereal is being viewed as a possible alternative to maize for the poultry industry.  In the oilseeds, groundnut sowing is ahead of last year's corresponding position in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and the irrigated tract of Rajasthan, while it is lagging behind in Andhra Pradesh. Soyabean sowing is progressive well in most of its growing tract, with major area expansion in Madhya Pradesh on the back of good rains.  The sowing of almost all the kharif pulse crops has so far been better than last year. Higher plantings seem imminent for tur (arhar), urad and moong in view of the expected good returns. The government is, however, yet to announce the minimum support prices (MSP) of pulses but the actual market prices are expected to continue to rule higher than the official MSP.  The total monsoon rains in the country till July 2 has been estimated by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) at 217.1 mm, about 21 per cent above the normal of 180.1 mm for this period.  However, eight of the country's 36 meteorological sub-divisions have received poor rainfall so far. These areas include (deficiency in brackets) Assam and Meghalaya (-30 per cent), Gujarat (-27 per cent), Marathwada (-56 per cent), Madhya Maharashtra (-27 per cent), Rayalaseema (-38 per cent), coastal Andhra Pradesh (-24 per cent) and Kerala (-28 per cent). The showers in the last few days in some of these areas are believed to have reduced the shortage to an extent.  The IMD has predicted widespread rains in the north-east and Indo-Gangetic plains in the next few days while the peninsular areas will continue to have subdued monsoon.  Significantly, the total water stock in the country's major reservoirs is fairly comfortable, being 32 per cent above the past 10 year's average level though it is about 12 per cent short of last year's corresponding position. This augurs well for irrigation as well as hydel power production in the post-monsoon period.  The total water stored in 66 multi-purpose dams having irrigation component was estimated by the Central Water Commission at 25.88 billion cubic metres (BCM) on July 3, 2008.  This is comparable with 25.7 BCM held in these reservoirs on the same date last year and well above the past 10 year's average level of 18.3 BCM.