The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has released its latest update on the progress of kharif crop sowing across the country as of June 20. The figures indicate a promising start to the kharif season, with the total area sown reaching 137.84 lakh hectares — an increase of nearly 13 lakh hectares compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
According to data compiled by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, rice sowing has seen a substantial rise, with 13.22 lakh hectares covered this year, compared to 8.37 lakh hectares last year — a gain of 4.86 lakh hectares.
Pulses have also witnessed a significant uptick. A total of 9.44 lakh hectares have been brought under pulses cultivation, marking an increase of 2.80 lakh hectares over 2024. Among individual pulse crops, urd bean saw a rise of 0.77 lakh hectares, and moong bean surged by 1.77 lakh hectares. However, arhar saw a marginal decline of 0.13 lakh hectares. Other pulses like mothbean, kulthi, and sesamum registered slight increases.
Coarse cereals — grouped under the newly rebranded “Shri Anna” category — recorded sowing over 18.03 lakh hectares, up by 3.25 lakh hectares compared to last year. Maize led this segment with 12.32 lakh hectares sown, reflecting a growth of 2.01 lakh hectares. Bajra and jowar also saw increases, while ragi and small millets recorded slight declines.
In contrast, oilseeds saw a slight decrease overall, with 5.38 lakh hectares sown this year as against 5.49 lakh hectares in 2024. Groundnut and soybean sowing declined marginally, while crops like sesamum and sunflower posted small gains.
Sugarcane continued its strong presence, with an area coverage of 55.07 lakh hectares — up by 0.20 lakh hectares from last year. Jute and mesta, however, saw a decrease of 0.17 lakh hectares in area sown.
Cotton has shown a healthy rise in sowing activity, with 31.25 lakh hectares covered this year as against 29.12 lakh hectares last year — a significant increase of 2.14 lakh hectares.
Overall, the kharif season of 2025 is off to a positive start, with total sowing across all major crops covering 137.84 lakh hectares compared to 124.88 lakh hectares in the same period last year.