Govt to Extend Area under Development for Summer Crops by Fifty Percent

The centre intends to extend the region under development for summer crops by fifty percent from current year’s 3.4 million hectares to 5.1 million hectares in  2021. 

"The attention is on the increment of the yield of pulses as well as oil seeds which depend upon less amounts of water and deliver value expansion to the food crate," said a senior agribusiness ministry officer. The horticulture ministry of India will uncover a blueprint and approach in order to upgrade the yield of summer crops, otherwise called zaid crops, at the National Conference on Agriculture Summer Campaign. 

"The crops for the summer season are grown around the months of March till June consistently each year in 13 states that are having guaranteed water system facilities. This turns out to be an extra source of earnings for farmers during the specified time after Rabi yield and before Kharif planting," the authority said. 

He also said that zaid crops are developed in just 2 percent of the entire cultivation area. "In any case, they help in spanning the shortfall in pulses as well as oilseeds creation, diminishing the reliance on import," he added. 

According to the horticulture ministry statistics, the water stockpiling in 128 key supplies in the nation is 22 percent more than the 10-year normal stockpiling. This will guarantee a convenient water system of summer crops which are totally reliant on canalized water. The public authority has guaranteed opportune appropriation of authorized seeds, pesticides and fertilizers among the farmers.

The main states that are producing crops during this time are Gujarat Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Specifically, the planting of crops such as pulses, builds the nitrogen composition of the soil and prepares the field for the planting of Kharif, the authority said. 

He also mentioned that the centre is targeting a summer planting production of 5 million tonnes of cereals and oilseeds combined. "In the midst of Covid-19, the requirement for coarse cereals such as jowar, maize, bajra and ragi has increased in the worldwide market. Farmers have a fare opportunity for these yields which can give them better acknowledgment. We are urging farmers to plant a greater amount of nitrogen based cereals as the same require lesser amounts of water," the authority said.