Monsoon covers entire country, but still 23% deficient; coarse-cereal belt in two states hit

New Delhi, July 11 (PTI): The government on Wednesday said it is worried about poor rains in Karnataka and central Maharashtra, which could affect the production of coarse cereals and supply of drinking water. Briefing reporters about the progress of monsoon and the sowing of kharif crops, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said the rainfall situation has improved across the country in last 10 days, barring these two states. "As on today, in the country as a whole, the rainfall situation is definitely improving vis-a-vis 10 days back. But the worrisome areas are Karnataka and central Maharashtra," Pawar told reporters after meeting with IMD officials. The two states have received scanty rains so far and the situation has not improved to the satisfactory level, he said. "There is a cause of concern about coarse cereal (bajra, jowar and maize) production and drinking water supply in these two states," Pawar said. On the impact of deficient rains on sowing of kharif (summer) crops across the country, he said there is no concern about paddy, cotton, sugarcane and oilseeds as planting of these crops is expected to pick up. "Sowing of rice, the main kharif crop, is in progress. There is good rain in Orissa and Chattisgarh and there should not be any problem in paddy area," he said. The planting of groundnut and soyabean is expected to improve as good rains had been reported from parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in the last two days, he added. "Only problem is coarse cereals. The coarse cereals situation is not good. Already 50 per cent sowing operation is over but sowing operation can go up to first week of August. Still there is time," Pawar said. Asked about the impact of deficient rains on supply and prices of food items, he said there is no problem of food grains availability and there is "no large impact" on prices. Separately, the India Meteorological Department said the monsoon has covered the entire country but the rains are still deficient by 23 per cent. The South-West monsoon had hit Kerala on June 5, but made slow progress. "Rainfall situation has improved but it is still minus 23 per cent. Monsoon is covering entire country today with parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan receiving heavy rains," IMD Director General L S Rathore told reporters here. With improvement in monsoon rains, Rathore said, the planting of paddy, soyabean and groundnut would pick up. Rathore was speaking to media after attending a meeting with Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and Food Minister K V Thomas to discuss the progress of monsoon. "Rains will now shift to Himalayas, Terai and north east region. The 23 per cent deficit in rains is likely to continue until next week," Rathore said. So far, he said, some parts of Karnataka, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat and central Madhya Pradesh have received scanty rains. India had produced a record 252.56 million tonnes of food grains in the 2011-12 crop year (July-June) after a good monsoon last year. Monsoon rains are crucial for agriculture sector, which contributes about 15 per cent to the country's GDP, as only 40 per cent of the total cultivable area is under irrigation.