Karnataka - Bangalore   

Sowing area may come down by 10 lakh ha in kharif season

BANGALORE: Owing to inadequate rain in 84 taluks of 21 districts, the sowing area in the kharif season is likely to be reduced by 10 lakh hectares.

Sowing in the kharif season would take place in 62 lakh to 65 lakh hectares against the target of 74.73 lakh hectares on account of scanty rainfall in some districts. During the sowing months of June and July, the State received 386 mm of rainfall against the normal 503 mm, Agriculture Department officials told The Hindu.

The sowing area in the season has declined compared to the progress made during the corresponding period last year. Sowing has taken place in 54.19 lakh hectares, accounting for 73 per cent of the targeted area. In the comparable period last year, it was 67.51 lakh hectares (87 per cent).

The officials said in the next one month sowing would be taken up in another eight lakh to 10 lakh hectares as farmers of Shimoga, Mysore, Mandya, Tumkur, Hassan, Chamarajangar, Chikmagalur, Bellary and Koppal districts were preparing lands for paddy cultivation by drawing water from reservoirs. Sowing of paddy and ragi would be taken up in another two lakh hectares each, and sunflower and horse gram in one lakh hectares each, they said.

According to the latest data, the area under cereals, pulses and oilseeds so far this year continued to trail the level achieved during the corresponding period of 2007.

The Government has declared 84 taluks as drought-hit. Added to this are reports of a severe shortage of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP), which adversely affects sowing.

The reduction has been the sharpest for bajra, minor millets, black gram, green gram, “avare”, and sesamum on account of dry weather in large parts of north Karnataka. The coverage of these crops is less than 50 per cent of the targeted area.

The percentage-wise coverage of major cereals is: paddy – 78; jowar – 67; ragi – 81; maize – 81; bajra – 44; and minor millets – 46. The acreage coverage for cereals was 27.23 per cent against the target of 36.70 per cent, accounting for 74 per cent. The sown area under pulses was 8.75 lakh hectares as against the target of 14.37 lakh hectares, accounting for 61 per cent.

The farmers planted oilseeds such as groundnut, sesamum, sunflower, castor, niger, mustard and soyabean on 11.77 lakh hectares as against the target of 17.33 lakh hectares, accounting for 68 per cent.

Only commercial crops such as cotton, sugarcane and tobacco exceeded the target (6.33 lakh hectares) with 6.44 lakh hectares.

However, excess rain and floods damaged standing potato crop on 30,000 hectares in Hassan and Chikmagalur districts. In Belgaum, Shimoga, Haveri, Bagalkot and Dakshina Kannada, standing crops on 30,000 hectares was affected due to heavy rainfall, the officials said.

The coverage was less than 75 per cent of the targeted areas in Gadag (40), Bijapur (41), Mandya (49), Bagalkot (54), Raichur (56), Koppal (68), Bellary (67), Gulbarga (61), Hassan (70), Dharwad (66), Bangalore Urban (74), Mysore (60) and Chamarajangar (74). Udupi district topped the list with 99 per cent coverage.

The fall in the coverage of foodgrain and oilseeds crops during the kharif season this year owing to scanty rainfall till July-end will prove dear to the State Government’s plans to achieve the foodgrain production to 91.48 lakh tonnes, according to the officials.

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