Rabi acreage rises 10%, wheat up sharply by 17%

18-Nov-2025 10:16 AM

The early pace of Rabi sowing has remained strong across the country, pushing total acreage 10.3% higher to 208.19 lakh hectares compared to the same period last year.

Favourable weather and an early onset of cold conditions in North India have raised expectations of better yields this season.

Wheat has seen the biggest jump. According to the Agriculture Ministry, wheat acreage has increased by 17% to 66.23 lakh hectares, up from 56.55 lakh hectares last year.

For this season, the government has set a production target of 119 million tonnes of wheat and a total of 171.14 million tonnes of foodgrains.

Growth has been recorded in other major crops as well:

* Rabi paddy: up 9.2% to 7.44 lakh hectares

* Maize: up 17.4% to 4.26 lakh hectares

* Coarse cereals: up 15% to 15.53 lakh hectares

* Chana (gram): up 10% to 37.43 lakh hectares

* Masoor (lentil): up 12.2% to 6.83 lakh hectares

* Oilseeds: up 5.2% to 66.17 lakh hectares (including 64.23 lakh hectares under mustard)

Overall, the combination of early sowing and favourable weather trends is expected to boost Rabi crop production this year.