Rabi sowing begins in Maharashtra; 9% sowing completed

Rabi sowing begins in October and concludes in mid-November. Officials said planting has been delayed due to rain in many parts of the state and will pick up once the showers subside and winter sets in.

Sowing for the rabi season has started in Maharashtra for the current year, with sowing completed on 9.64% of the total area under cultivation in the first week of November as per latest reports of the Maharashtra department of agriculture.

Of the total 52 lakh hectares under rabi crop this season, sowing has been completed on 4.93 lakh hectares as of last week. Last year, sowing the figure was 4.84 lakh hectares for the same period. The main crops of the rabi season include wheat, maize, gram, sesame, mustard, peas, oats, jowar and bajra.

Rabi sowing begins in October and concludes in mid-November. Officials said planting has been delayed due to rain in many parts of the state and will pick up once the showers subside and winter sets in.

Pulses have been planted on 89,200 hectares until last week as opposed to 41,157 hectares same time last year. Oilseeds have been planted on 2,040 hectares as against 1,129 hectares last year. Food grains, including pulses, jowar, wheat and maize, have been planted on 4,91,578 hectares. Last year, the area under food grains was 4,83,259 hectares in the same period.

The Maharashtra government has set a sowing target of 60 lakh hectares for the rabi season of 2021-22 as against the previous year’s 51 lakh hectares. According to state agriculture minister Dadasaheb Bhuse, since the state has witnessed a good monsoon for the second consecutive year, the state is likely to reach the target.

According to the report, some kharif crops, including cotton, soybean, urad, moong, jowar, bajra and groundnuts, are ready for harvesting. The tur crop has begun flowering.

According to officials, the area under sugarcane is likely to increase, especially in the Marathwada region, because of the good rains. Sugarcane was cultivated on 143.82 lakh hectares in the kharif season.

Sugarcane plantation for rabi commences from December. For this rabi season, the Centre has allocated around 29.50 lakh tonne of fertilisers to the state.