Agricultural Seasons in India


Agriculture in India dates back to Indus Valley Civilization Era and even before that in some parts of Southern India

The agricultural crop year in India is from July to June.
  • The Indian cropping season is classified into two main seasons- (i) Kharif and (ii) Rabi based on the monsoon.
  • The kharif cropping season is from July –October during the south-west monsoon and the Rabi cropping season is from October-March (winter).
CROPPING SEASONS IN INDIA
India has many growing seasons due to prevalence of high temperature through a long period. Different crop seasons are: 

(a) Kharif: Crops are sown at the beginning of the south-west monsoon and harvested at the end of the south-west monsoon.
  • Sowing seasons – May to July
  • Harvesting season – September to October
  • Important crops: Jowar, bajra, rice, maize, cotton, groundnut, jute, hemp, sugarcane, tobacco, ete.
(b) Rabi: Crops need relatively cool climate during the period of growth but warm climate during the germination of their seed and maturation.
  • Sowing season – October to December
  • Harvesting season – February to April
  • Important crops: wheat, barley, gram, linseed, mus­tard, masoor, pea~ and potatoes.
(c) Zaid: Besides the kharif and rabi crops, there are certain crops which are being raised throughout the year due to artificial irrigation.
  • Zaid kharif crops are sown in August-September and harvested in December-January.
  • Important crops: rice, jowar, rapeseed, cotton, oilseeds.
  • Zaid rabi crops are sown in February-March. Harvesting is in April-May.
  • Important crops: watermelon, toris, cucumber, leafy and other vegetables.

Fact about Indian Agriculture
  • India ranks second in agricultural output and India is in top five positions for about 80 percent of products produced from farm.
  • The main food grain of India is rice. India ranks second worldwide in rice production. West Bengal is the top state in rice production followed by Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Bihar. Central rice research institute is located in Cuttack, Odisha.
  • India ranks fourth in wheat production. Uttar Pradesh is the highest wheat producing state of India.
  • Some of the millets produced in India are Bajra, Jowar, Ragi. Maharashtra is the highest Jowar producer in India. In Bajra production Rajasthan and in Ragi production Karnataka ranks first.
  • India is the second most tea producing country and in India Assam is the most tea producing state. Karnataka is the highest coffee producing state.
  • Sugarcane is one of the main crops produced by India. Uttar Pradesh is the key state in producing sugarcane. Central research centre for sugarcane in located in Lucknow.
  • Cotton and Jute are the main fiber crops produced in India. Maharashtra is the largest producer of cotton and West Bengal is the largest producer of Jute.
  • A leading program of Ministry of Agriculture is the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, which was launched in 2007 on the recommendations of the National Development Council of India. This program sought to improve the overall state of agriculture in India by providing stronger planning, better co-ordination and greater funding to improve productivity and overall output.