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India's wheat production may surpass the government's estimate of record 112.18 million tonnes in the 2022-23 crop year (July-June) on a likely jump in crop yields in major growing states despite inclement weather affecting the grain quality in some parts, Agriculture Commissioner P K Singh said on Thursday.
Weeks before the untimely rains, the government in its second estimate released in February projected wheat output at 112.18 million tonnes for the 2022-23 crop year.
The previous record in wheat production was 109.59 million tonnes in 2020-21 crop year.
"Overall, the wheat production is likely to surpass the estimate of 112.18 million tonne on account of better crop yields," Singh told PTI.
The crop yields have improved in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh even as the untimely rainfall during the harvesting stage in the March-April period has caused damage to the grain in terms of lustre loss and high moisture, he said.
The yields have improved on account of climate resistance wheat varieties, which the government has been promoting in the last five years, he added.
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Singh said although unseasonal rains have caused damage to the crop in some parts of the wheat-growing states leading to quality loss, the rains have boosted the prospects in areas where late-sown varieties were planted.
Wheat production had declined marginally to 107.74 million tonnes in the previous year because of heatwave in some states.
Wheat was sown in 343.23 lakh hectares in the rabi season of the 2022-23 crop year (July-June).
For the country's food security purpose, the government has procured 25.2 million tonnes of wheat directly from the farmers so far in the ongoing 2023-24 marketing year (April-March).
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
