NEW DELHI: A delayed and deficient monsoon so far has slowed summer crop sowing, sparking a concern over farm output, especially pulses. So far, farmers have sown across 82.20 lakh ha, around 7.8% of the total area that goes under cultivation in the entire Kharif season Paddy acreage is 4.26 lakh ha against 5.47 lakh ha in the corresponding period last year.Similarly, area for pulses reduced from 2.11 lakh ha in 2018 to 1.04 lakh ha this year. The total pulses production in 2018-19 crop season was 23.22 million tonnes – down by 2.20 million tonnes from 25.42 million tonnes in 2017-18. It has also extended the import limit of pulses (Tur) from 2 lakh tonnes to 4 lakh tonnes to ease prices. The government also has a record stock of food grains close to 70 million tonnes in its warehouses, minimising the threat of a price rise.

Source: Economic Times June 14, 2019 18:22 UTC