1. NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON AGRICULTURE FOR RABI CAMPAIGN 2017-18 (19-20th September, 2017)
Kharif Review
Rabi Prospects
Strategies
Dr. S. K. Malhotra
Agriculture Commissioner
Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare,
Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare

2. RAINFALL IN KHARIF 2017 South West Monsoon:
Deficient States % Departure
Upto June %
Upto July %
Upto August %
Rainfall (1st June - 18th Sep) :
Actual : mm
Normal : mm
Deficit : %
Deficient (-20% to -59%) rainfall States:
M. P., Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Nagaland, Manipur, Goa

3. 2016 2016 2016 2017 Total subdivisions : 36 Excess/ Normal : 24
Deficit : 12
Total subdivisions : 36
Excess/ Normal : 29
Deficit : 7
Incidence of floods: Assam, Bihar, WB, MP, Rajasthan, parts of UP & Maharashtra

4. REGION WISE PERCENT LIVE STORAGE OF WATER IN
MAJOR RESERVOIRS (2017 & 2016)
Region
2016
2017
Northern Region 79 86
Eastern Region 78 62
Western Region 74 71
Central Region 59
Southern Region 42 41
All India 68
10 Year Average 73
Live Storage
(in BCM)
Total live storage capacity Full Reservoir Level=157.8 (BCM)
Last 10 Year Average: BCM
Total reservoirs: 91
52 reservoirs : >80% capacity of normal storage
39 reservoirs : <80% capacity of normal storage
(-) 19% Departure from 10 years Avg.
Source: CWC, GOI. As on

5. AREA COVERAGE: KHARIF -2017 Increase / Decrease over 2016
(As on )
Crop
Normal Area *
(million hectare)
Area Sown during
Kharif
Increase / Decrease over 2016
2016
2017
Rice
39.59
37.91
37.40
- 0.51
Pulses
10.56
14.55
14.04
Coarse Cereals
19.22
18.84
18.45
- 0.39
Oilseeds
18.40
18.86
17.20
- 1.66
Sugarcane
5.00
4.56
4.99
+ 0.43
Jute & Mesta
0.84
0.76
0.71
- 0.05
Cotton
12.25
10.22
12.15
+ 1.93
Total
105.86
105.71
104.94
- 0.77
* DES: Avg to

6. AREA COVERAGE : PULSE CROPS Increase / Decrease over 2016
Kharif Season
(in million ha as on )
Increase / Decrease over 2016
 Crop
Normal Area*
2015
2016
2017
Red gram
3.92
3.73
5.24
4.30
-0.94
Black gram
2.48
2.76
3.51
4.26
+0.75
Green gram
2.34
2.54
3.44
3.16
-0.28
Other Pulses
1.81
2.08
2.37
2.32
-0.05
Total Kharif pulses
10.56
11.11
14.56
14.04
-0.52
Source: SDA
*DES Avg to

7. AREA COVERAGE : OILSEED CROPS Increase / Decrease over 2016
Kharif Season
(in million ha as on )
Increase / Decrease over 2016
 Crop
Normal Area*
2015
2016
2017
Groundnut
4.15
3.65
4.68
4.14
- 0.54
Soybean
11.04
11.62
11.47
10.58
- 0.89
Other Oilseeds
3.21
2.96
2.71
2.48
-0.23
Total Kharif Oilseeds
18.40
18.23
18.86
17.20
- 1.66
Source: SDA
* DES: Avg to .

8. AREA COVERAGE: COMMERCIAL CROPS Increase / Decrease over 2016
Kharif Season
(in million ha as on )
Increase / Decrease over 2016
 Crop
Normal Area*
2015
2016
2017
Cotton
12.24
11.42
10.17
12.10
+ 1.93
Jute &
Mesta
0.84
0.77
0.76
0.71
- 0.05
Sugarcane
5.00
4.96
4.56
4.99
+ 0.43
Source: SDAs
* DES: Avg to

9. CROP PRODUCTION TARGETS 2017-18
million tonnes/bales
Crops
(4th Adv. Estimate)
(Targets)
Kharif
Rabi
Total
Rice
96.39
13.76
110.15
94.50
14.00
108.50
Wheat -
98.38
97.50
Maize
19.24
7.02
26.26
19.00
7.00
26.00
Coarse cereals
32.71
11.48
44.19
33.75
11.90
45.65
Total Pulses
9.42
13.53
22.95
8.75
14.15
22.90
Total Foodgrains
138.52
137.16
275.68
137.00
137.55
276.55
Oilseeds
22.40
9.70
32.10
25.40
10.10
35.50
Sugarcane
306.72
355.00
Cotton (170 kg bales)
33.09
Jute & Mesta (180 kg bales)
10.60
11.80

10. STRATEGIES FOR RABI
Region specific crop planning based on moisture availability
Pre-positioning of Inputs: seeds, fertilizers, micro-nutrients, bio-agents/agro- chemicals, soil ameliorants etc.
Moisture conservation practices and use of farm machinery for timely sowing
Judicious use of water for irrigation (scheduling, micro- irrigation, etc.)
Focus on rice fallow area for sowing of pulses and oilseeds
Promotion of relay cropping / inter-cropping to enhance production and profit per unit area and risk management
Application of fertilizers and micronutrients (sulphur, molybdenum, zinc, boron, etc) as per Soil Health Card

11. REQUIREMENT AND AVAILABILITY OF SEEDS (Rabi 2017-18)
Crop
Requirement (lakh quintal)
Availability
(lakh quintal)
Deficit/
Surplus
Wheat
121.26
149.77
+28.51
Rabi Sorghum
1.05
1.07
+0.02
Chickpea
17.16
19.26
+2.10
Blackgram
0.83
0.99
+0.16
Greengram
0.49
0.71
+0.22
Lentil
1.37
1.36
-0.01
Rapeseed - Mustard
2.18
2.42
+0.24
Source: Seed Division, DAC, GOI.

12. REQUIREMENT AND SALES OF FERTILIZERS Rabi: 2017-18 (As on 14.09.2017)
Assessed Requirement (lakh tonne)
Total Consumption
(lakh tonne)
Urea
160.93
152.58
162.35
DAP
49.72
47.68
50.83
MOP
17.03
15.20
16.70
NPK (Complex)
49.61
43.42
50.46
SSP
33.38
21.49
29.48
Source: INM & FMS, DAC, GOI

13. SPECIFIC ISSUES Wheat blast in Bangaldesh
Yellow Rust & Karnal Bunt in Northern states: Each state should have strategy to manage these diseases.
Enforcement of Seed Certification Standards:
Promotion of seed production during off season to meet the demand
Enforcement of alternate management of crop residues and avoid burning

14. INITIATIVES FOR PULSES AND OILSEEDS
150 Seed Hubs in Pulses
Proposal for seed hubs on oilseeds is under process
Enhanced targets of breeder seed production of pulses and oilseeds by ICAR / SAUs.
Increased number of seed minikits of pulses and oilseeds.
Scaling up of ‘Seed Village’ program from 30, 000 to 60,000

15. INITIATIVES FOR PULSES & OILSEEDS (contd.)
Cluster FLDs of pulses and oilseeds involving more number of KVKs.
Special scheme for increasing pulse production.
Promotion of pulses & oilseeds as alternate crop in: a) Targeting Rice Fellow Area – Eastern states
b) Wheat blast areas - West Bengal
Promotion of greengram & sunflower during summer
Additional area coverage of 75,000 ha under oil palm during next 2 years ( & )
Bee keeping in oilseeds & other crops

16. WE NEED TO PROMOTE PULSES & OILSEEDS IN RICE FALLOWS
Eastern States: Paddy Fallow – 8 million ha (Eastern), 3 mil ha (south)
West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Assam
Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka
Options:
Pulses: Lentil, lathyrus and chickpea
Oil seeds: Mustard, safflower and linseed
Identification of potential districts with rice fallows
Promote timely sowing of pulses in residual moistures
Availability of seeds of suitable varieties
Use of natural resources: tanks/watersheds for life saving irrigation (PMKSY)
Pooling of resources : NFSM, NMOOP, ATMA, RKVY and other schemes.
Motivating large number of farmers in a village

17. Appropriate strategy will help to address the constraints and achieve the target
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