Wheat, oilseeds sowing dip this rabi season

Sowing of wheat and oilseeds have declined marginally in 2017-18 rabi season even as the overall acreage for winter crops crossed the targeted 63 million hectares.

According to the data released by the agriculture ministry on Friday, farmers had sown wheat crop on 300.70 lakh hectares so far as against the 317.82 lakh hectares acreage achieved for the same period last year in rabi season.

Besides wheat, oilseeds acreage was lower at 80.29 lakh hectares so far in the rabi season of this year, as against 84.44 lakh hectares for the corresponding period last year.

However, area sown to pulses was higher at 166.47 lakh hectares so far in the current rabi season as against 158.02 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.

According to the data, coarse cereals acreage was also slightly lower at 56.27 lakh hectares as against 57.23 lakh hectares in the said period.

Rice acreage was also higher at 28.61 lakh hectares as against 24.21 lakh hectares.

Total area sown to all rabi crops was lower at 632.34 lakh hectares so far in the current rabi season as against 641.72 lakh hectares in the year-ago period, the data said.

The Modi government is banking on a good farm output this rabi season to shore up agricultural growth that was pegged at 2.1% by the Economic Survey.