Progress of Area Coverage under Kharif Crops as on 19.06.2026

📌 Summary:

• Total area sown under Kharif crops as on 19 June 2026 reached 119.90 lakh hectares, up 1.95 lakh ha over the same date in 2025 (117.95 lakh ha)
• Rice sowing rose to 12.36 lakh ha (vs 8.09 lakh ha in 2025), a gain of 4.26 lakh ha
• Pulses up to 7.21 lakh ha (vs 6.39 lakh ha); Shri Anna and coarse cereals up to 12.43 lakh ha (vs 9.82 lakh ha), led by Bajra (+1.91 lakh ha)
• Oilseeds dipped to 7.24 lakh ha (vs 8.11 lakh ha), pulled down by Soybean (-1.20 lakh ha)
• Cotton fell to 17.13 lakh ha (vs 22.82 lakh ha), a decline of 5.69 lakh ha
• Sugarcane (57.31 lakh ha) and Jute & Mesta (6.22 lakh ha) marginally higher than last year

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 (cropping pattern, agriculture, food and oilseed security). Early sowing trends signal monsoon progress and likely shifts in production and import dependence (notably oilseeds).

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Kharif crops are sown with the onset of the southwest monsoon (June-July) and harvested in autumn (Sept-Oct)
• Major Kharif crops: rice, maize, bajra, jowar, ragi, pulses (arhar, moong, urad), soybean, groundnut, cotton, sugarcane
• 'Shri Anna' is the government's branding for millets (nutri-cereals)

🔑 Key Term: Kharif season — the monsoon cropping season in India (sowing June-July, harvest October), dependent on the southwest monsoon.