Monsoon Shortfall: Centre Ramps Up Seed Supply, Insurance to Shield Farmers

NEW DELHI: The agriculture ministry has intensified ground-level measures, including ensuring adequate seed availability and other interventions, to safeguard sowing operations amid concerns over the skewed distribution of rainfall and the potential impact of El Nino on the monsoon.

Although the overall rain deficit reduced from 40 per cent on June 30 to 15 per cent on July 8, the area sown under Kharif (summer) crops until Monday was 21 per cent lower than the corresponding period last year. Sowing has been completed on approximately 351 lakh hectares, a decrease of 92 lakh hectares from 443 lakh hectares in 2025.

The acreage of paddy, the most popular Kharif crop, has fallen by 14 per cent to 60 lakh hectares as of July 6, compared with 70 lakh hectares last year. Oilseeds sowing has declined sharply by nearly 40 per cent to 66 lakh hectares from 109 lakh hectares, while cotton acreage has dropped to 63 lakh hectares from 82 lakh hectares.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Wednesday predicted a “significant reduction” in rainfall over central India from Thursday, posing an additional challenge. It has already forecast “below normal” rainfall for July due to El Nino, a climate pattern characterised by above-average sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, which is associated with a weak monsoon in India.

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Wednesday that the Centre is closely monitoring the situation in 13 states — Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Bihar, Jharkhand, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal and Odisha — where Kharif sowing has been affected by the late arrival of the monsoon.

The number of rainfall-deficient districts has declined from 262 to 178. However, many districts received substantially high rainfall over a short period in the past week due to a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal, leaving farmers unprepared.

Chouhan said efforts are being intensified to increase farmers' participation under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (crop insurance scheme) to provide financial protection in case of crop losses due to adverse weather.

Referring to the government's preparedness, the minister said an extensive monitoring mechanism was put in place considering the potential impact of El Nino. “The entire system was activated in advance and is working proactively... The El Niño Monitoring Cell, Crop Weather Watch Group, state-level control rooms and designated officers are continuously monitoring the progress of the monsoon, crop sowing, crop conditions and market trends,” he said.