India's Kharif Pulse Crop Down 14%
VANCOUVER - Sep 19/14 - SNS -- India's monsoon or kharif season pulse harvest will be down sharply from last year, sinking 14% to 5.2 million metric tons (MT) for the smallest crop since 2009, according to the first advance estimates for 2014-15 from the country's Department of Agriculture and Cooperation.
Output of all kharif season crops is expected to total 120.27 million MT, down 8.97 million from last year's record 129.24 million MT harvest.
"Due to delayed/deficient rainfall, area coverage under most of the crops during current kharif season has declined," the agriculture department said. "Erratic rainfall and dry spells in several parts of the country have also impacted productivity of crops. . . .
"However, these are preliminary estimates and do not take into account the positive impact of rainfall of September 2014. Also, as per past experience, the first advance estimates reported by States are generally conservative and subsequently undergo upward revision."
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