Farmers can hope for a rich harvest this year

India is expected to harvest a bumper wheat crop for the second consecutive year, with production estimates ranging between 109 million tonnes (mt) to 112 mt.

- NEERAJ MOHAN

Experts attributed this to favourable weather conditions, the use of climate-resilient high-yielding wheat varieties and a slight increase in the area under cultivation.

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, while speaking at an event in Delhi, expressed optimism about the country's wheat production but did not provide specific figures. However, both farmers and industry experts believe that the output may even reach last year's record of 113.29 million tonnes.

"The wheat crop is looking very healthy this year, and we expect yields to be around 22 to 24 quintals per acre. This could help farmers earn an additional Rs 5,000 to Rs 8,000 per acre," said Raghubir Singh, a wheat farmer from Karnal.