NEW DELHI: Wheat acreage has increased 3 per cent so far in the ongoing rabi season at 286.5 lakh hectares mainly on higher sowing areas in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the government data showed.
The area under coverage for wheat, which is the major crop in the rabi (winter-sown) season, stood at 278.25 lakh hectares in the same period last year.
The sowing of rabi crops starts in October.
The higher area under wheat has been reported mainly from Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Karnataka.
Acreage is down so far in Maharashtra and Haryana.
An increase in wheat sowing area may lead to higher production provided the weather remains conducive for the growth of this crop.
The domestic production of wheat fell to 106.84 million tonnes in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June) from 109.59 million tonnes in the previous year due to heat waves in some of the producing states.
In May this year, the government banned exports of wheat to boost domestic supplies and control prices.
Wheat procurement by state-owned FCI fell to 187.92 lakh tonne in the 2022-23 marketing year from 434.44 lakh tonne due to a fall in domestic output and aggressive purchases by private parties.
According to data as on December 16, paddy acreage has increased to 12.64 lakh hectares so far from 11.13 lakh hectares.
Pulses have been sown in 139.68 lakh hectares so far as against 134.01 lakh hectares, with an area under gram rising to 97.9 lakh hectares from 94.97 lakh hectares.
The area under coverage for coarse cereals has risen to 41.34 lakh hectares from 38.37 lakh hectares.
In the non-foodgrain category, the area under coverage for oilseeds has increased to 97.94 lakh hectares from 90.51 lakh hectares.
Mustard, the main oilseeds crop in the rabi season, rose to 89.99 lakh hectares from 83.18 lakh hectares.
India imports about 60 per cent of its edible oils requirement.
Therefore, the increase in mustard seed acreage will boost the domestic output of mustard oil.
The total area sown to rabi crops has increased to 578.10 lakh hectares so far from 552.28 lakh hectares in the corresponding period last year.