Rabi acreage is up by nearly six per cent as on Friday compared with the corresponding period a year ago, as farmers have planted more area under winter crops such as wheat, rice, gram (chana) and rapeseed/mustard.

Wheat, the main rabi crop, has been planted on 273.97 lakh hectares (lh) against 253.20 lh during the same time last year.

States which have reported an increase in acreage include Madhya Pradesh (11.11 lh), Uttar Pradesh (5.24 lh), Rajasthan (3.03 lh), Gujarat (3.63 lh) and Bihar (0.97 lh).

The current sowing trend in wheat has raised expectations of its total acreage exceeding last year’s level of 298.3 lakh ha as plantings are likely to continue till mid-January. High soil moisture coupled with comfortable storage level in reservoirs across the country is seen aiding winter crop plantings.

Besides wheat, the coverage of other key winter crop rapeseed/mustard is also higher mainly in Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat.

In Rajasthan, mustard has been planted on 29.73 lh against last year’s 27.32 lh.

In Uttar Pradesh, the second largest mustard producing State, acreage is marginally lower at 10.37 lh against 10.49 lh last year.

Gram or chana, the main pulse crop in the rabi season, has also seen an increase in acreage at 86.92 lh compared with last year’s 83.05 lh.

This is contrary to expectations that the acreage might decrease as chana prices have been hovering below the minimum support price level for sometime now.

The acreage under gram has increased mainly in Madhya Pradesh by two lh, Maharashtra (2.16 lh) and Rajasthan (1.45 lh).

The acreage under maize has increased mainly due to higher planting in Bihar, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

In Bihar, the maize acreage has gone up by 1.17 lh, while in Maharashtra it is up by 71,000 hectares and in Tamil Nadu by 34,200 hectares.

However, the area under jowar has declined marginally mainly due to lower planting in Maharashtra and Karnataka.

> vishwanath.kulkarni@thehindu.co.in

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