India's Monsoon Misery: Sowing Slumps, Reservoirs Dwindle Amid El Niño Threat
India's critical Kharif sowing season is facing a grim start, with planting activities lagging a significant 21% behind last year's pace as of early July, primarily due to an ongoing monsoon deficit. Farmers have cultivated crops across just 350.85 lakh hectares so far, a sharp drop from 442.80 lakh hectares in the same period last year. Oilseeds, including soybean and groundnut, and cotton have borne the brunt of this slowdown, seeing the steepest declines in acreage.













