New Delhi [India], July 1 (ANI): The overall sown area for Kharif crops has improved by 11.3 per cent as of June 27, 2025, on year on year basis, as South-West monsoon has picked up pace, with rainfall recorded at 9 per cent above the Long Period Average (LPA) until June 30, 2025, revealed a recent report by Bank of Baroda.

The report further adds that, the higher sown area is particularly evident in pulses and rice, which have grown by 37.2 per cent and 47.3 per cent respectively.

Particularly, within pulses, urad and moong bean have registered an increase. Oilseeds, led by soybean and groundnut, have also seen higher acreage. In contrast, the sown area for cotton and jute & mesta has declined by 8.9 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively for the same period.

Regionally, 19 out of 36 sub-divisions (49 per cent of the country) have received normal to excess rainfall. The North Western (42 per cent) and Central (25 per cent) regions have reported above-normal rainfall, including states like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. Parts of the Central and Southern regions, such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, have received normal rainfall.

However, the East and North Eastern India reported deficient rainfall (-17 per cent), followed by the Southern Peninsula (-3 per cent). States like Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Nagaland, and Meghalaya in the Eastern and North Eastern regions have reported deficient rainfall, as have Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in the Southern belt.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) expects above-normal rainfall for July 2025, at 106 per cent above LPA. The overall cumulative rainfall until June 30, 2025, is 180mm, which is higher than both last year's 147mm and the normal rainfall of 165mm for this period.

Reservoir storage levels across India are also significantly higher than last year. As of June 26, 2025, the storage level for 161 reservoirs stands at 36 per cent of total capacity, compared to 20 per cent last year. The Southern region has the highest reservoir level at 45 per cent, followed by Western (39 per cent), Eastern (31 per cent), Northern (30 per cent), and Central regions (29 per cent). (ANI)