India’s total area under summer crops stood at 6.41 million hectares as of April 10, 2026, up marginally from 6.3 million hectares a year ago, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare on Monday.
The increase was driven by higher sowing of pulses, coarse cereals and oilseeds, although the decline in rice acreage capped the overall increase in summer crop acreage.
Rice area fell to 3.06 million hectares from last year’s 3.23 million hectares. In contrast, area under pulses increased to 1.15 million hectares from 1.07 million hectares, led by higher sowing of greengram and blackgram.
Sowing of coarse grains (shree anna) increased to 1.36 million hectares from 1.27 million hectares a year ago, supported by maize and bajra. Oilseed coverage also improved to 831,000 hectares from 762,000 hectares, with groundnut and sesame contributing to the increase.
The current summer sowing area, based on averages from 2022-23 to 2024-25, stands at 7.53 million hectares, indicating that the current season still has room for further expansion in the coming weeks.
India has three main cropping seasons: summer (zaid), kharif and rabi. The summer season, which usually lasts from March to June, is a short period between the winter and monsoon cycles. Crops grown during this period are usually short-lived and largely dependent on irrigation.
Kharif crops are sown with the onset of monsoon in June-July and harvested from October to November, while rabi crops are sown in October-November and harvested by January. Zaid crops are grown in the period between these two main agricultural seasons.
Rice acreage may continue to remain under pressure if water availability remains limited in major production belts, experts said.
The summer sowing trend assumes significance as it sets the base ahead of the monsoon season, especially at a time when the India Meteorological Department (IMD) is forecasting sub-normal rainfall for 2026.
On Monday, the weather agency predicted rainfall at 92% of the 50-year average.
Adequate rainfall is critical to India’s agricultural production as it boosts the agricultural economy and boosts rural demand, benefiting sectors such as fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and automobiles and supporting overall economic growth momentum.
