Agriculture Ministry Releases First Advanced Estimates of Kharif Crop Production for 2025-26

India’s agriculture ministry has released its first advance estimates for 2025–26 Kharif production, projecting higher output across major crops. The estimates put total food grain production at 173.33 million tonnes, up 3.87 million tonnes from the previous year.

The ministry expects strong results for Kharif rice and maize. Kharif rice is estimated at 124.504 million tonnes, an increase of 1.732 million tonnes year over year, while Kharif maize is projected at 28.303 million tonnes, up 3.495 million tonnes.

Other projections include total Kharif coarse cereals at 41.414 million tonnes and Kharif pulses at 7.413 million tonnes. Within pulses, tur (arhar) is estimated at 3.597 million tonnes, urad at 1.205 million tonnes, and moong at 1.720 million tonnes. Kharif oilseeds are estimated at 27.563 million tonnes, including groundnut at 11.093 million tonnes (0.681 million tonnes higher than last year) and soybean at 14.266 million tonnes.

The ministry also estimates sugarcane production at 475.614 million tonnes, up 21.003 million tonnes from last year. Cotton is projected at 29.215 million bales (170 kilograms per bale), and Patson and Mesta at 8.345 million bales (the bale weight was not clearly stated in the source text). The estimates are based on past yield trends, ground-level inputs, regional observations, and data received from states, and will be revised when crop-cutting experiment results are available.

Separately, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) said it has denied allegations of bias in the evaluation of gene-edited rice lines Pusa DST-1 and DRR Dhan 100 Kamala under All India Coordinated Research Project on Rice (AICRPR) multi-location trials. ICAR said the lines are blind-coded and evaluated at trial sites across the country over 2–3 years, within a system that tests more than 1,200 breeding lines annually and has operated since 1965.

Why it matters

• The first advance estimates provide an early read on expected Kharif output, including projected increases in total food grains, rice, and maize.
• These projections can shift as crop-cutting experiment data comes in, so the numbers are not final.
• ICAR’s statement outlines how gene-edited rice lines are evaluated in multi-location trials and responds to claims of bias.

What to do next

• Watch for revised estimates when crop-cutting experiment yield data becomes available.
• Follow updates from ICAR and AICRPR as multi-location trial evaluations continue and additional details are released.

Source

Original reporting by agriculturepost.com: https://agriculturepost.com/farm-inputs/agrochemicals/agriculture-ministry-releases-first-advanced-estimates-of-kharif-crop-production-for-2025-26/