As sowing of rabi crops reaches its last stage, the area covered is more than in 2015, but compared to the last normal monsoon year of 2013, the acreage does not show a significant rise.
Both 2014 and 2015 were drought years. This year, sowing is complete in around 98.4 per cent of the normal area.
Till January 20, rabi crops have been sown on 62.83 million hectares, six per cent more than last year and around 34 per cent more than the average of the last five years.
Wheat, the largest rabi crop has been planted in 31.31 million