Kharif Crop Acreage in Andhra Pradesh Lags Behind Last Year

Vijayawada: Although sowing of Kharif crops in the South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has made good progress in recent weeks, the total acreage still trails last year's figures by approximately 2 lakh hectares. The pace of sowing was sluggish from the very beginning due to the lack of timely and adequate monsoon rainfall in the state this season.

According to the latest data from the State Agriculture Department, the total area under Kharif crops in Andhra Pradesh reached 26.79 lakh hectares by September 30, 2026; this is 1.98 lakh hectares less than the 28.77 lakh hectares sown during the same period last year. Compared to the previous year, the area under paddy cultivation in the state dropped from 15.58 lakh hectares to 13.88 lakh hectares, while the acreage for coarse cereals declined from 2.43 lakh hectares to 1.84 lakh hectares. Within the coarse cereals category, the area sown with maize fell from 1.89 lakh hectares to 1.32 lakh hectares, whereas the acreage for pearl millet (bajra) and finger millet (ragi) remained close to last year's levels.

On the other hand, the area under pulses increased from 3.52 lakh hectares to 4.09 lakh hectares. Specifically, the area sown with pigeon pea (tur) improved from 3.11 lakh hectares to 3.48 lakh hectares, and the area under black gram (urad) rose from 27,000 hectares to 50,000 hectares.

The acreage for oilseed crops also saw a slight improvement, rising to 2.29 lakh hectares this season from 2.27 lakh hectares last year. Under this, although the groundnut sowing area declined from 1.79 lakh hectares to 1.75 lakh hectares, there was a slight increase in the acreage of sesame, castor, and soybean. However, the cotton acreage dropped from 4.73 lakh hectares and stagnated at 4.49 lakh hectares.