Crop loss due to floods, excessive rain is 2-4%, not a cause for concern: agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan

New Delhi: Crop loss in India in the past few months due to floods and excessive rainfall is estimated to be a mere 2-4%, although damage to kharif or monsoon crops in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana is expected to be significant.

The overall crop loss, however, is not a cause for concern as the sowing of most kharif or monsoon crops had exceeded the last year’s spread, Union agriculture and farmers’ welfare minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan told Mint on the sidelines of an event on Friday.

“Overall, the production of various crops, including paddy, pulses, soybean, and others, is expected to increase. In fact, soybean has been sown on about 1.25 lakh hectares more than the previous year,” the minister said.

The procurement of all crops, including soybean, will be carried out at the minimum support price (MSP), he said, adding, “We are also working on implementing better initiatives for farmers’ welfare.”

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“In areas affected by flooding, the damage is more severe, particularly in regions close to rivers. However, major areas remain largely unaffected. Although there are losses, they amount to only 2-4% of the overall production, which is relatively minimal compared to national production levels,” Chouhan said.

The average sowing area for kharif crops over the past five years (2018-2019 to 2022-2023) is 109.58 million hectares. 

As of 6 September, the total sown area for kharif crops was 109.23 million hectares, representing 99.68% of the five-year average. In the same period during last year’s kharif season, the sown area was 106.92 million hectares. 

The monsoon sowing season starts in June and ends in October. Sowing continues till September.

Andhra and Telangana affected

Flowers, turmeric and some other crops, however, have been severely affected because of floods or heavy rains, Chouhan had said in a statement on 5 September.

“The preliminary estimate indicates that around 1.8 lakh hectares of crops have been damaged and about 2 lakh farmers have been impacted due to the heavy rains,” he said.

As per the Andhra Pradesh government’s agriculture ministry data, the total area sown in the state was 23.86 lakh hectare (73.5%) as of 11 September, against the normal area of 32.50 lakh hectares.

For paddy, the Andhra Pradesh government has set a target of 15.63 lakh hectares for sowing in this kharif season. Of that, 12.22 lakh hectares had been sown till 11 September.

In pulses, 2.66 lakh hectares have been sown against the target of 3.34 lakh hectares. In oilseeds, out of the target area of 6.58 lakh hecatares, sowing has been completed on 3.15 lakh hectares.

Chouhan has also submitted a damage assessment report for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to Union home minister Amit Shah.

The Union government has deployed central teams to evaluate the damage caused by excessive rainfall and floods during the kharif season in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

“A similar team will be deployed to Maharashtra, with plans to send teams to other affected states as well. The central teams are expected to submit their reports within a month,” a senior official said.

According to the Telangana Agriculture Department, average rainfall received in Telangana from 1 June to 11 September was 897.6 mm, as against the normal of 636.9 mm.

As of 11 September, the total area sown in Telangana was 49.83 lakh hectares, compared to the normal area of 52.37 lakh hectares, as per the Telangana Agriculture Department.