-Deccan Chronicle Jowar sown on 15,625 acres in Mahbubnagar district, and on 1,695 acres in Nagarkurnool has dried up. Hyderabad: The poor monsoon this year, resulting in a prolonged dry spell, has destroyed crops, especially in five districts of the state. The cotton crop sown on 24,875 acres in Ranga Reddy district has been lost, though elsewhere it has done well. Jowar sown on 15,625 acres in Mahbubnagar district, and on 1,695 acres...

-Livemint.com Karnataka govt has stopped the sale of paddy seeds in some districts hoping to get farmers to switch to ragi and Jowar among other coarse grains Bengaluru: Following a lukewarm response to its promotional efforts, Karnataka has resorted to more forceful measures to get farmers in the Cauvery command area to switch from cultivating water-intensive crops such as paddy and sugarcane to drought-tolerant millets as part of a plan to stabilize...

-The Financial Express More than ‘normal’ rainfall in the last three weeks in 11 districts of south-interior Karnataka, which received scanty rains in the first two months of monsoon season (June-July), has helped revive kharif sowing activities to a large extent. According to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC), the quantum of rainfall in August so far in these districts, including Mandya, Mysuru, Chitradurga and Bengaluru, has been 95...

-The Indian Express The consolation this time, though, is the surplus showers during June and July. It has resulted in the cumulative rainfall for the four-month southwest monsoon season (June-September) being only 4.3 per cent below normal till August 16. New Delhi: The current month is turning out to be the driest August in eight years. The country as a whole has received 25.6 per cent less area-weighted rainfall during August 1-16...

-The Hindu This, despite early release of water to Godavari, Krishna deltas Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh): Deficit rainfall in July in August has impacted sowing in the State. The State government’s pro-active step to release water early to Godavari and Krishna deltas to hasten sowing too has not worked to the expected level. While the normal area sown till date (August 9 from June 1) is 24 lakh hectares, sowing has been completed only...