INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The area under wheat jumped 25 per cent during the week ended December 9 compared to the same period last year
This comes as farmers brought more area under the crop in anticipation of better returns.
Record high prices and hope that markets will
remain favourable for wheat in the next few months due to dwindling stocks in government granaries and with private traders boosted
sentiment, traders said.
According to the latest data from the agriculture ministry, till Friday, wheat has been sown in around 25.57
During the same period last year, it was 20.39 million hectares
In total, wheat is usually sown in around 30-31 million hectares of land.
However, below par winters so far in North India and rising
temperatures during the daytime remains a concern
This is more so with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicting a warmer-than-normal winter in the north this year.
According to
some reports, wheat needs around 14-15 degree Celsius temperature in the daytime during its growing stages
Farmers feel that there will be very good demand for their produce once it starts hitting the market due to near absence of pipeline stocks
during this time of the year (December), the wheat crop needs fog, mist and cold weather, but this year, it is still warm during the
day.
Overall, traders are confident that total acreage will be 10-15 per cent more than the previous years
annual wheat production dropped significantly due to sudden rise in temperatures just ahead of harvesting.
Meanwhile, data showed that
acreage of all other crops, be it gram or mustard, has been higher than last year.
The area covered under mustard till December 9 is around
8.92 per cent more than the same period last year
The Centre had imposed a ban on wheat exports in May to control prices.
The minister said that wheat production last year had declined
marginally from 109.59 million tonnes in 2020-21 to 106.84 million tonnes in 2021-22.
The all-India yields of wheat declined in 2021-22 to
3,507 kg/hectare from 3,521 kg/hectare in 2020-21.
This was due to a severe heat wave during March-April 2022 in major wheat-growing states
like Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.
