Area under paddy crop increased by 4.4 per cent to 384.05 lakh hectares so far in the ongoing kharif season despite a lag in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, according to data released by the Ministry of Agriculture on Friday.
However, pulse acreage was down 8.30 per cent at 117.44 lakh hectares as on August 25 as against 128.07 lakh hectares in the year-ago period.
Tur, urad and moong acreage, too, remained lower.
Kharif (summer) sowing begins with the onset of the southwest monsoon in June, while harvesting starts in October.
Paddy is the main kharif crop as more than 80 per cent of the total rice production is grown during this season.
"We are quite comfortable in paddy area coverage. Sowing is still underway and the window is till September 15," Agriculture Commissioner P K Singh told PTI.