 "Acreage of summer crops down slightly; area under rice, oilseeds falls")
The area under coverage for summer crops is marginally down so far at 65.29 lakh hectares, according to the agriculture ministry data.
The sowing area under rice and oilseeds is less, while the acreage of pulses and coarse cereals is higher, the data showed.
The ministry on Monday released the progress of area coverage under summer crops as of April 28, 2023.
As per the data, the area under coverage for rice stood at 27.45 lakh hectares so far against 29.14 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
Pulses acreage rose to 17.57 lakh hectare from 16.23 lakh hectares, while sowing area of coarse cereals increased to 10.86 lakh hectares from 10.19 lakh hectares.
In the non-foodgrains category, oilseeds acreage is down at 9.40 lakh hectares till April 28 from 10.46 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
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Overall, the total area under summer crops till April 28 stood at 65.29 lakh hectares, marginally down from 66.02 lakh hectares a year ago.
The growing season for zaid/summer crops is short -- March-June. It is between rabi (winter-sown) and kharif (summer sown) seasons. Zaid/summer crops are raised where assured irrigation facilities are available.