Early sowing has contributed to an increase in the area covered by rabi crops in India compared to the previous year. With the early arrival of winter bringing a cold wave to many regions in northern India, farmers are optimistic about improving yields this season, which could assist the government in reaching its production goals.
As of November 14, the aggregate area under all agricultural crops rose by 10.3 percent to 208.19 lakh hectares (lh) compared to 188.73 lh last year. Specifically, the area under barley has surged by 50 percent, with overall coverage 27 percent greater as of November 7.
In the previous year, India recorded a total area of 663.04 lh for rabi crops, producing a record 167.22 million tonnes (mt) of food grains and 13.57 mt of oilseeds.
This year’s production target set by the government stands at 171.14 mt of food grains. This includes specific targets of 119 mt of wheat, 15.86 mt of rice, 16.57 mt of pulses, 3.17 mt of nutri cereals, 14.5 mt of maize, and 2.05 mt of barley, along with 15.07 mt of oilseeds, of which 13.9 mt is mustard.
Recent data from the Agriculture Ministry indicates that wheat acreage has reached 66.23 lh as of November 14, a 17 percent increase from 56.55 lh last year. Experts from the Karnal-based Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Research (IIWBR) recommend that farmers complete sowing by November 20, focusing on high-yielding varieties suitable for timely sowing.
Farmers who planted wheat in October are advised to control weeds and provide the first irrigation 20-25 days after planting to promote healthy crop growth. Those who sowed wheat in the first week of November should also irrigate their fields within the same timeframe.
In terms of other crops, the sowing area for rabi paddy has increased by 9.2 percent to 7.44 lh from 6.82 lh, while maize sowing is up by 17.4 percent to 4.26 lh from 3.63 lh. Barley acreage has reached 1.83 lh, an increase from 1.22 lh, and jowar has grown to 8.82 lh from 8.21 lh. The total area under nutri/coarse cereals has risen to 15.53 lh, a 15.1 percent increase from 13.50 lh.
In the pulses category, total acreage has reached 52.82 lh compared to 48.93 lh last year, with chana (gram) area increasing by 10 percent to 37.43 lh from 34.04 lh, and masur (lentil) acreage growing by 12.2 percent to 6.83 lh from 6.08 lh.
Oilseeds cultivation has also seen a rise, reaching 66.17 lh as of November 14, up 5.2 percent from 62.93 lh. This includes coverage of 64.23 lh under mustard, a 6.1 percent increase from 60.52 lh compared to the previous year.
Published on November 17, 2025.
