'Maha, Bihar, K'taka may bear brunt of kharif crop damage'

Maharashtra, Bihar, and Karnataka are estimated to bear the brunt of kharif crop damage due to floods and excess rain in the current crop year, a Crisil report said on Tuesday as the kharif crop output is expected to be 4-6 per cent lower year-on-year in crop year 2019-20.

Sharp surge in prices hit Indian households as the delayed kharif sowing impacted harvesting, as indicated by 38 per cent lower mandi arrivals (across 2,000 mandis in India) during October-November 2019, the report said.

"The outlook for this year is muted in comparison, though a rise in mandi prices for kharif and higher productivity for rabi crop would lend support to overall profitability per hectare," Crisil said in the report.

Crisil also said that an unprecedented heavy rainfall in September-October would lower kharif crop production by 4-6 per cent year-on-year but "a 10 per cent above-normal monsoon has filled reservoirs to the brim, which in turn, promises to elevate rabi crop productivity and lead to 7-8 per cent higher output."

Besides, lower market supply of kharif foodgrains will push up mandi prices by over 10 per cent, higher MSP and government support for wheat (which accounts for over 50 per cent of the rabi crop output) is expected to aid price growth for rabi, leading to an expansion in the overall per-hectare farm profitability in crop year 2019-20.
IANS