-The Hindu After a record run in two consecutive years, foodgrains production is likely to decline this year owing to the deficient southwest monsoon during the 2012-13 kharif season. This adversely impacted the output of pulses, coarse cereals and oilseeds, with a bearing on their price levels. But what may bring down the overall output is the slightly lower area sown under rabi wheat, rice, coarse cereals and minor oilseeds. The crops...

-The Economic Times AHMEDABAD: Insufficient rains during Monsoon has dropped Rabi acreage to a three year low of 29.3 lakh hectare, reveal state government data. The sowing is about 18% lesser than 37.35 lakh hectare in the previous Rabi season. This is second year in succession that winter sowing has declined. The kharif acreage in 2012 had also dropped by 7% to 81.71 lakh hectare because of rains that were about 27%...

-Outlook The agriculture sector witnessed record foodgrains output of 257.44 million tonnes in this year enabling the country to become world's largest rice exporter for the first time, but the monsoon played spoilsport dashing farmers' hopes of an encore in 2013. A hefty increase of Rs 1 lakh crore in farm credit target to Rs 5.75 lakh crore was a major highlight for the sector in 2012, while the continuing farmers suicide...

-The Economic Times AHMEDABAD: Wheat output may remain stable this season due to remunerative prices and sufficient water availability. However, agriculture officials feel that the delay in announcing wheat MSP for rabi season might deter farmers. "We don't see a drop in wheat acreage this year and the production should clock similar to that of previous year's 93.90 million tonne. It will be too early to say that the area will increase...

-Outlook Output of major crops, both food and non-food, is expected to decline by about 2.3 per cent in 2012-13 as sowing has remained sluggish, economic think tank CMIE has said. "Production of major crops is projected to decline in 2012-13. A fall in output of both food and non-food crops is expected to dip by 2.3 per cent," Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy said in its monthly report. Kharif acreage continued to...