Telangana crop area rises 10 per cent despite El Niño impact

Telangana has recorded a 10 per cent increase in cropped area despite the El Niño impact, according to PJTAU. The university said pulses and oilseed cultivation has increased, attributing the growth to crop diversification campaigns encouraging farmers to adopt alternative cropping patterns.

Hyderabad: Despite the El Niño impact, the crop area has gone up by 10 per cent in the State. In fact, pulses and oilseed crops have shown an increase this year compared to last year.

According to the Professor Jayashankar Telangana Agricultural University (PJTAU), the normal cropped area in Telangana is pegged at 98.13 lakh acres. Of this, sowing has already been completed in 33 lakh acres, accounting for 34 per cent of the normal cropped area. This represents a 10 per cent increase compared to the corresponding period last year.

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The university came up with the latest report on the cropped area based on the analysis of satellite imagery collected through the Remote Sensing and GIS System at the Centre for Digital Agriculture and Technology, which was established at PJTAU last year.

Among the districts, the highest percentage of sown area was recorded in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri (57 per cent), Medchal-Malkajgiri (54 per cent) and Jangaon (51 per cent). Khammam (16.5 per cent), Wanaparthy (17.3 per cent) and Warangal (20.1 per cent) reported the lowest percentage of sown area.

PJTAU Vice Chancellor Prof. Aldas Janaiah said that, as in the previous year, paddy, cotton and maize continue to account for the largest share of the cultivated area in the State. However, the area under pulses and oilseed crops has shown an increase compared to last year.

He attributed this growth to the crop diversification awareness campaign, which encouraged farmers to adopt alternative cropping patterns.