Timely onset of monsoon leads to speedy kharif crop sowing in Rajasthan

Rajasthan is the top-most producer of guar with around 70% share in the country's total production of the crop

The sowing of Kharif crops has picked up pace in Rajasthan due to the timely onset of monsoon, with most achieving nearly 90 per cent of the sowing target area.

Guar, pearl millet (bajra), moong and soybean are the main crops sown during the kharif season in Rajasthan. Other major crops include maize, moth, and urad.

Rajasthan is the top-most producer of guar with around 70 per cent share in the country’s total production of the crop.

According to the state agriculture department, more than 90 per cent of the target sowing area of groundnut and soybean has been achieved in the state.

 

“Farmers have also sped up sowing of other kharif crops and completed planting on 50 per cent of the total target area,” an agriculture department official said.

The agriculture department in this kharif season has increased the sowing target area of almost all the crops.

The data released by the agriculture department show that sowing of Kharif crops is happening at a rapid pace in the state. Most of the soybean is sown in Kota region of the state. The rest of the crops are grown in the whole of Rajasthan.

According to the figures of the agriculture department, the target of sowing pearl millet (bajra) was increased to 43.80 lakh hectares this year from 42.65 lakh hectares last year. The crop has been sown on 69.80 per cent target area so far.

Similarly, the target area for sorghum (jowar) was increased to 6.10 lakh hectares from 5.09 lakh hectares last year. The crop has been planted on 96.54 per cent of the total area this year so far, according to the agriculture department.

The target area for Maize was increased to 9.70 lakh hectares from 8.47 lakh hectares. So far, it has already been sown in over 89 per cent of the target area.

In pulses, the target area of moong was from 23.97 lakh hectares last year to 25 lakh hectares this year. Farmers have completed sowing of the crop on 67.50 per cent area.

Among oilseed crops, the sowing target for soybeans was set at 11.03 lakh hectares last year. This year it has been increased to 11.50 lakh hectares and till now over 92 per cent of sowing has been done.

Likewise, the sowing target for groundnut was set at 8.82 lakh hectares last year. This year it has been reduced to 8 lakh hectares. So far, over 90 per cent sowing of groundnut has been done by the farmers in the state.

Among other crops, the sowing target for guar was set at 28.93 lakh hectares last year. This year, the sowing target of the crop has been reduced to 27.60 lakh hectares. Till July 16, over 58 per cent of guar sowing had been done. Last year, the sowing target for cotton was set at 10 lakh hectares.

Ramotar Khandelwal, a guar trader at Kukarkheda grain market in Jaipur, said that whatever the government figures are, this time the sowing of guar will be equal to last year or maybe a little more than that.

“We feel that the area of guar and pearl millet will increase this year because of good demand both from India and overseas,” Khandelwal said.