Coarse Grain Sowing Up, Crop Condition Normal

14-Aug-2025 08:33 PM

New Delhi. Although the sowing area of jowar and bajra has fallen behind compared to last year, but due to increase in maize and ragi area, the total production area of coarse grains has increased from 171 lakh hectares to 179 lakh hectares.

There has been a normal increase of 26 thousand hectares in the area of ragi but the area of maize has jumped by 8.75 lakh hectares. This is not an unusual event because this time a huge increase in the production area of maize was already being estimated.

According to official data, during the current Kharif season, compared to last year, the area of jowar at the national level fell from 13.96 lakh hectares to 13.69 lakh hectares and the sowing area of bajra got stuck at 64.86 lakh hectares, down from 65.76 lakh hectares.

On the other hand, the area under Ragi improved from 4.15 lakh hectares to 4.41 lakh hectares and the area under maize production jumped from 83.15 lakh hectares to 91.89 lakh hectares. Small millets were sown in 3.88 lakh hectares while last year it was 3.93 lakh hectares.

In fact, in view of the rapidly increasing demand and consumption of maize, its sowing area was already expected to increase.

Farmers are getting good income from maize cultivation while the government has also increased its minimum support price (MSP) by Rs 175 from last year's Rs 2225 per quintal to Rs 2400 per quintal, which has further increased the enthusiasm of the farmers.

There has been a good increase in the sowing area of maize in almost all the major producing states of the country and the condition of the crop remains satisfactory.

As a result, the production of maize is expected to be better this time. The preparation of harvesting of its new crop is likely to start in October-November.