Paddy sowing has fallen by 12.39 per cent at 309.79 lakh hectares so far in the ongoing kharif season due to a lag in coverage, especially in Jharkhand and West Bengal, according to the agriculture ministry.
The area sown to pulses and oilseeds was lagging behind the summer season this kharif, compared to the year-ago period, it said.
Paddy is the main kharif crop, which begins with the onset of the southwest monsoon from June. Approximately 80 percent of the country's total production comes from this season.
The ministry's data showed that the area sown to paddy was lower at 309.79 lakh hectares compared to 353.62 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
Paddy has been sown in Jharkhand in only 3.88 lakh hectares so far this season, down from 15.25 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
In West Bengal, the paddy sowing was less than 24.3 lakh hectares as opposed to 35.53 lakh hectares in the same period.
As per the data, less coverage has also been reported from Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Tripura, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Goa, Sikkim and Mizoram in the said period.
There has been a marginal decline in coverage of pulses and oilseeds this kharif season.
There was 122.11 lakh hectares sown to pulses at the end of the season, down from 127.22 lakh hectares in the same period a year ago.
During the same period, Arhar coverage remained less than 42 lakh hectares as opposed to 47.55 lakh hectares.
There has been a slight decline in oilseeds coverage at 180.43 lakh hectares so far this kharif season compared to 181.83 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
This kharif season, the area sown to coarse-cumin nutri cereals has been marginally increased by 166.43 lakh hectares compared to 161.33 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
Among cash crops, coverage of sugarcane was slightly increased at 55.20 lakh hectares as opposed to 54.52 lakh hectares while the cotton area remained higher at 123.09 lakh hectares as opposed to 116.15 lakh hectares during the comparable period.
The data showed that the area under the jute mesta remained flat at 6.94 lakh hectares from the year-ago period.
The total area sown to all kharif crops was down by 37.63 lakh hectares at 963.99 lakh hectares until August 12.
The country has received 8 per cent more southwest monsoon rains between June 1 and August 10 of this year, but 16 per cent less rain in East and North Eastern parts, according to the Met Department.