Archive · 20 Jul 2026
Kharif sowing gap narrows to 6%
Kharif crop sowing in India has improved recently.
The area sown has gone from a 16% deficit to a 6% deficit in just a week.
This is because of better rainfall in central and eastern India, especially for rice.
However, pulses and oilseeds are still behind last year's levels due to late rains.
The monsoon is still not as strong as usual, but it's getting better.
Experts say the rainfall in the next few months will decide how well the crops grow.
Overall sown area is at 65.81 million hectares, a 6% year-on-year decline.
Rice sowing has improved to a 0.84% y-o-y decline, up from 8.6% a week ago.
Pulses sowing is down 15% y-o-y, with tur (pigeon pea) down 18% y-o-y.
Cotton and oilseeds sowing are also lagging behind last year's levels.
Monsoon deficit has improved to 23.1% from nearly 40% at the end of June.
- Who
- Indian farmers and agriculture ministry
- What
- Kharif crop sowing progress and monsoon rainfall
- When
- As of July 20
- Where
- Central and eastern India
- Why
- To assess the impact of monsoon rainfall on kharif crop sowing
Optimistic View
Pessimistic View
Rainfall Impact
Optimistic View
Improved rainfall in central and eastern India has boosted sowing, especially for rice.
Pessimistic View
Scanty rainfall until late June and delayed monsoon in some regions have negatively impacted pulses and cotton.
Sowing Progress
Optimistic View
Overall sowing has improved from a 16% deficit to a 6% deficit in a week, indicating positive momentum.
Pessimistic View
Pulses and oilseeds are still significantly behind last year's sowing levels, raising concerns about yield.
- Overall sown area
- 65.81 million hectares (6% y-o-y decline)
- Rice sown area
- 16.64 million hectares (0.84% y-o-y decline)
- Pulses sown area
- 6.92 million hectares (15% y-o-y decline)
- Tur (pigeon pea) sown area
- 2.48 million hectares (18% y-o-y decline)
- Cotton sown area
- 79.25 million hectares (5.96% y-o-y decline)
- Oilseeds sown area
- 5.54% y-o-y decline
- Monsoon deficit
- 23.1% as of Monday
- Cumulative rainfall (June 1-July 20)
- 263.2 mm (deficient range)
