New Delhi, Sep 8 : The total area sown under kharif crops in the current season has increased by 26.93 lakh hectares to 1,105.42 lakh hectares, as on September 5, compared with the corresponding figure of 1,078.49 lakh hectares in the same period last year, data released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on Monday showed.

The increase in sown area augurs is expected to lead to higher production, which in turn would increase the incomes of farmers and also help to keep food inflation in check.

The official figures show that the area under rice is 438.28 lakh hectares, so far this year, going up by 19.63 lakh hectares from 418.66 lakh hectares during the same period last year.

The area under pulses such as urad and moong has gone up to 116.40 lakh hectares as compared to 114.46 lakh hectares during the same period last year.

The area covered under coarse cereals or millets such as jowar, bajra, and ragi has shot up by 12.09 lakh hectares to 191.71 lakh hectares during the current season so far, compared to the same period of the previous year.

The sown area has gone up in the current season as better monsoon rains have facilitated the sowing in unirrigated areas of the country, which account for close to 50 per cent of the country's farmland.

The area under sugarcane has also increased to 57.31 lakh hectares, which is 1.64 lakh hectares higher than the corresponding figure for the same period of the previous year.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on May 28 this year, approved an increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for 14 kharif crops for the marketing season 2025-26 to ensure remunerative prices to the growers for their crops and incentivise production.

The highest absolute increase in MSP over the previous year has been recommended for nigerseed (Rs 820 per quintal) followed by ragi (Rs 596 per quintal), cotton (Rs 589 per quintal), and sesamum (Rs 579 per quintal).

/IANS