Time running out for sowing Kharif crops as rain deficit continues

With hardly 10 days of the right time left for sowing of major Vanakalam (Kharif) crops in Telangana, reaching the planned extent of crops such as cotton, maize, soybean, redgram, greengram and blackgram appears to be getting increasingly difficult as the State suffers an average rainfall deficit of 35% as on July 9.

With hardly 10 days of the right time left for sowing of major Vanakalam (Kharif) crops in Telangana, reaching the planned extent of crops such as cotton, maize, soybean, redgram, greengram and blackgram appears to be getting increasingly difficult as the State suffers an average rainfall deficit of 35% as on July 9.

The rainfall deficit in the sowing/transplantation period has also pulled up the demand for energy from the agriculture sector and in the first eight days of July, the consumption was recorded at 1,730.77 million units against 1,346.01 MU last year. In June, the consumption was 6,074.78 MU this year as against the previous highest of 5,310.32 MU in June last year.

“Hopes of the Agriculture Department to reach even a reduced cultivation extent of 130 lakh acres for the Kharif season largely depend on paddy transplantation now, as reaching the 50 lakh acres extent for cotton looks almost impossible as it has been sown only in about 26 lakh acres so far – as on July 8,” a senior official said, throwing light on the possible scenario. Last year, the Kharif crops were cultivated in about 136.04 lakh acres.

The extent of other major crops of the season such as maize, soybean, redgram and others has also not reached the planned extent. Maize is sown in hardly 16% of the last year’s extent of 6.21 lakh acres so far, redgram in about 35% of the 5.62 lakh acres cultivated last year and soybean in about 52% of the last year’s 4.33 lakh acres so far.

Paddy has been transplanted in about 1.5 lakh acres so far and the exercise could go up to July-end or even up to mid-August, although the right time recommended by agriculture scientists is till the end of July third week. They have advised the farming community only to go for short-duration varieties (four months) so as to take up the second crop early. Paddy was cultivated in about 64.55 lakh acres during the last Kharif.

More than half (325) of the 612 mandals in the State have rainfall deficit ranging from 20% to 59% and another 11% (69) of the mandals have scanty or large deficient rainfall ranging from 60% to 99%. According to the information reaching here, a section of farmers is struggling hard to keep the seedlings of cotton, redgram, soybean and others alive due to lack of soil moisture/rain. Only about 36% (218) of the mandals have either normal or higher rainfall.