Kharif crop in trouble? Rainfall deficit hits 397 districts as paddy-growing areas along the Ganga face drought-like conditions

Prelims-testable facts

• 01As of July 13, 2026, 397 out of 741 districts in India had recorded below-normal rainfall.
• 02The total kharif sowing stood at 531.25 lakh hectares as of July 10, which is around 16% lower than the same period last year.
• 03Paddy cultivation depends heavily on timely monsoon rain in the Gangetic plains, including parts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand.
• 04The area under paddy remains higher than the normal sowing area of 9.77 million hectares for this point in the season.
• 05Total kharif sowing had reached 53.12 million hectares by July 10, compared with 63.27 million hectares during the same period last year — a shortfall of 10.14 million hectares.
• 06The first and second fortnights of July are considered crucial for paddy transplanting.
• 07A prolonged rainfall deficit during this period can increase irrigation demand and delay or reduce planting in rainfed areas.

Trap alerts

• Most people think that the kharif crop is only affected by drought-like conditions, but actually it is also impacted by uneven distribution of rainfall.
• Most people think that the El Niño phenomenon is solely responsible for the rainfall deficit, but actually it is just one factor contributing to the issue.