Sowing of coarse grains is gradually picking up pace

25-Nov-2025 10:55 AM

New Delhi. The pace of sowing of coarse grains/Shri Anna during the Rabi season is now gradually increasing. While farmers are currently more inclined towards wheat, pulses, and oilseeds, sowing of coarse grains, especially sorghum, maize, barley, and ragi, is also ahead of last year. The sowing process will continue for a long time.

According to government data, the gross area under coarse grains production at the national level during the current year has increased to 19.70 lakh hectares as of November 21, 2025, which is 2.45 lakh hectares more than the 17.25 lakh hectares sown during the same period last year.

Under this scheme, the area under sorghum increased from 8.45 lakh hectares to 9.00 lakh hectares, the area under finger millet increased from 40 thousand hectares to 50 thousand hectares, the area under maize production increased from 5.40 lakh hectares to 6.60 lakh hectares,

and the area under barley increased from 3 lakh hectares to 3.50 lakh hectares. The area under small millets has also increased. Millet is rarely cultivated during the Rabi season.

Although the wholesale market price of maize is well below the government support price, farmers' enthusiasm and interest in its cultivation has not diminished.

The average area under sorghum for the Rabi season is estimated at 23.61 lakh hectares, while sowing has already been completed on more than 25 percent of this area.

In Bihar, the leading producer of Rabi maize, sowing picks up later in the season because the Kharif crops are harvested late there.

Barley acreage is increasing in Rajasthan, as farmers there have been generating good income from it.

Similarly, farmers in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and some other states, including Karnataka, are showing significant interest in sorghum cultivation. In the coming years, significant improvements in the area under grain/coarse grains are expected.