Crop Report
India kharif area so far down 1.5% YoY; paddy, maize, soybean down
This story was originally published at 20:23 IST on 21 August 2026
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--India kharif acreage 105.7 mln ha so far vs 107.3 mln ha year ago
--India kharif paddy acreage 40.5 mln ha so far vs 41.8 mln ha year ago
--India kharif pulses acreage 11.4 mln ha so far vs 11.2 mln ha year ago
--India kharif oilseeds acreage 18.8 mln ha so far vs 18.9 mln ha year ago
--India kharif maize acreage 8.9 mln ha so far vs 9.3 mln ha year ago
--India kharif tur acreage 4.4 mln ha so far vs 4.3 mln ha year ago
--India kharif urad acreage 2.4 mln ha so far vs 2.2 mln ha year ago
--India kharif moong acreage 3.3 mln ha so far vs 3.4 mln ha year ago
--India kharif soybean acreage 12.1 mln ha so far vs 12.3 mln ha year ago
--India kharif groundnut acreage 4.9 mln ha so far vs 4.8 mln ha year ago
--India kharif sugarcane acreage 5.8 mln ha so far vs 5.9 mln ha yr ago
--India kharif cotton acreage 10.8 mln ha so far vs 10.9 mln ha year ago
NEW DELHI – Farmers across the country have sown kharif crops on nearly 105.7 million hectares as of Friday, down 1.5% from 107.3 million hectares a year ago, according to data from the agriculture ministry. Sowing of paddy, maize, moong, oilseeds such as soybean, and many other crops was lower than year-ago levels.
The area under paddy, the largest kharif crop, declined over 3% on year to 40.5 million hectares, and maize acreage fell 4% on year to nearly 9.0 million hectares, data showed. Total pulses acreage was 11.4 million hectares, up over 1% as more cultivation of urad and tur offset a reduction in moong and other pulses.
Meanwhile, oilseed acreage fell 0.2% on year to 18.8 million hectares, as reductions in soybean and other oilseeds were not offset by gains in groundnut and sunflower. The area under soybean, the major oilseed sown during the kharif season, fell over 1% on year to 12.1 million hectares, while groundnut area rose more than 1% to 4.9 million hectares.
Among cash crops, the area under jute rose nearly 2% on year, but sugarcane and cotton acreage declined nearly 1% and 0.3%, respectively, the data showed. Kharif sowing is nearing completion, and farmers have so far sown crops over nearly 96% of the normal area of 110.45 million hectares.
The following table details the sowing of key kharif crops as of Friday, in million hectares, compared with year-ago levels and the year-on-year change in percentage terms:
| Crop | Acreage 2026 (mln ha) | Acreage 2025 (mln ha) | Change (%) |
| Paddy | 40.51 | 41.83 | -3.2 |
| Tur | 4.39 | 4.34 | 0.9 |
| Urad | 2.44 | 2.17 | 12.2 |
| Moong | 3.27 | 3.39 | -3.6 |
| Total pulses* | 11.36 | 11.21 | 1.3 |
| Maize | 8.95 | 9.33 | -4.1 |
| Bajra | 6.47 | 6.33 | 2.1 |
| Jowar | 1.34 | 1.26 | 6.4 |
| Total coarse cereals* | 17.64 | 17.98 | -1.9 |
| Groundnut | 4.88 | 4.82 | 1.2 |
| Soybean | 12.14 | 12.28 | -1.2 |
| Total oilseeds* | 18.84 | 18.87 | -0.2 |
| Sugarcane | 5.84 | 5.88 | -0.7 |
| Jute & Mesta | 0.63 | 0.62 | 1.7 |
| Cotton | 10.85 | 10.87 | -0.3 |
| Grand total* | 105.67 | 107.28 | -1.5 |
* The total figures will not tally due to the omission of some smaller crops
End
Reported by Afra Abubacker
Edited by Avishek Dutta
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