Maize acreage trails last year's figures by 3 lakh hectares

07-Sep-2026 12:50 PM

New Delhi. The total area under coarse cereals has declined to 181.40 lakh hectares in the current Kharif season, down by 1.10 lakh hectares from the 182.50 lakh hectares sown last year. These figures are as of September 4.

While the sown area for *Jowar* (sorghum) and *Bajra* (pearl millet) saw a significant increase during this period, the acreage for maize and *Ragi* (finger millet) dropped considerably. There was a slight increase in the area under small millets.

Compared to last year, the area under *Jowar* rose from 12.61 lakh hectares to 13.58 lakh hectares, and the sown area for *Bajra* jumped from 62.87 lakh hectares to 64.86 lakh hectares; however, the area for *Ragi* fell from 8.77 lakh hectares to 7.60 lakh hectares, and the maize area dropped from 94.10 lakh hectares to 91.10 lakh hectares. The sown area for small millets improved from 4.15 lakh hectares to 4.26 lakh hectares.

Although the sown area for *Bajra* had trailed last year's figures for several weeks, it has now moved ahead by 2 lakh hectares. In contrast, the acreage for maize and *Ragi* has lagged behind from the start and continues to do so. Farmers in several states have shown less enthusiasm for sowing maize because market prices have not been attractive, and the government has made only a marginal increase in its Minimum Support Price (MSP).

The New Delhi-based representative of the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) has projected a decline of 50 lakh tonnes in India's maize production. According to the Union Ministry of Agriculture, domestic maize production surged from 434 lakh tonnes in the 2024-25 season to an all-time high of 550 lakh tonnes in the 2025-26 season, whereas the USDA post has projected a decline in production to 500 lakh tonnes for the 2026-27 season.