Groundnut sowing surges in Gujarat, cotton area declines

This figure is higher by around two lakh hectare – with at least a couple of more weeks remaining in the sowing season – when compared to 16.35 lh of groundnut sowing area recorded at the end of 2023 Kharif sowing season.

In Gujarat, Kharif groundnut is sown in June-July and harvested in October-November.

The figure of groundnut sowing so far this year is also higher than the previous three years’ annual average acreage of 17.51 lh. Currently, groundnut sowing area is 104.38 per cent of the average acreage. It is for the first time since the 2021 Kharif season that groundnut sowing has gone past an area of 18 lh. Groundnut acreage was 16.88 lh in 2019, 21.62 lh in 2020, 18.87 in 2021 and 17.63 in 2022.

While cotton continues to be the single largest crop this year with a sowing area of 22.34 lh, it seems to be falling out of favour with some farmers and hence, there is a comparative decline in its overall acreage.

During the corresponding period of 2023 Kharif season, farmers had sown cotton in 26.24 lh. The current sowing figure of 22.34 lh is 89.54 per cent of the last three years’ average cotton sowing area of 24.95 lh.

Cotton and groundnut are the main Kharif crops of Gujarat, which is the largest producer of these two crops in India.

Within Gujarat, 11 districts of Saurashtra account for bulk of sowing area of these two crops. Much of the surge in groundnut sowing and decline in cotton area has been reported this year. As compared to 12.58 lh groundnut area recorded last year, Saurashtra has seen groundnut sowing in 14.55 lh so far this season.

In Saurashtra, the largest increase has been reported from Amreli and Rajkot districts where groundnut sowing area has increased from 1.511 lh to 2.07 lh and from 2.26 lh to 2.66 lh, respectively. These two districts have seen their cotton sowing area declining from 3.65 lh to 2.98 lh and from 2.44 lh to 1.81 lh, respectively.

Similar trend is being reported from five to six districts of north Gujarat, the other major region where these crops are grown. While groundnut acreage has increased from 2.98 lh to 3.20 lh, that of cotton has gone down from 2.35 lh to 1.81 lh. Jinesh Kanani, district agricultural officer of Amreli, said, “Pink bollworm pest attack due to farmers sowing uncertified seeds, monocropping and rain late in monsoon have kept cotton yields low over the last three years. Prices in the range of around `7,000 per quintal over the last couple of years is lower than around `10,000 per quintal that farmers expect.”

“In such a scenario, groundnut becomes an attractive option for farmers, as it is a 100-120 day crop when compared to 180-day cotton crop. It allows farmers to sow a Rabi crop in the winter. It is also less labour intensive,” he added.

Groundnut prices hovered around `6,000 per quintal in Gujarat in the 2023-24 Kharif marketing season, lower than the 2022-23 rate of Rs 6,250.

However, the Union government has jacked up the minimum support price (MSP) of groundnut to `6,783 per quintal for 2024-25 Kharif marketing season from the previous year’s ` 6,377. Likewise, MSP of cotton has risen to `7,161 from `6,620 for medium staple varieties and up to `7,521 from `7,020 for long staple varieties.

Overall, sowing in Gujarat stands at 63.28 lh, which is almost 74 per cent of the previous three years’ average sowing area of 85.58 lh.