Sugarcane acreage edged higher to 57.31 lakh hectares against 56.64 lakh hectares last year.

Ajith Athrady

New Delhi: The Centre on Monday said that the total area sown under kharif crops this season has reached 119.90 lakh hectares as on June 19, up from 117.95 lakh hectares during the same period last year.

Data released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare showed encouraging growth in several key crops.

Rice acreage expanded significantly to 12.36 lakh hectares from 8.09 lakh hectares a year ago, registering an increase of 4.27 lakh hectares.

Pulses, particularly urad and moong, also recorded healthy progress, with the sown area rising to 7.21 lakh hectares compared to 6.39 lakh hectares last year.

Coarse cereals and millets (jowar, bajra, and ragi) witnessed a robust jump to 12.43 lakh hectares from 9.82 lakh hectares in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Sugarcane acreage edged higher to 57.31 lakh hectares against 56.64 lakh hectares last year.

However, sowing of oilseeds has been lower at 7.24 lakh hectares so far, down from 8.11 lakh hectares during the same period last year. Within oilseeds, soybean sowing declined sharply to 1.30 lakh hectares from 2.50 lakh hectares a year ago.

Cotton acreage has come down drastically to 17.13 lakh hectares from 22.82 lakh hectares last year – a decline of 5.69 lakh hectares.

The mixed sowing trends come shortly after the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved an increase in Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for 14 kharif crops for the marketing season 2026-27.

Published Date: June 23, 2026