New Delhi: The country’s production of cotton, soyabean, sugarcane and kharif maize is estimated to scale record highs in the recent fiscal.

As per the Union Agriculture Ministry’s First Advance Estimates of crop productivity, brought out on Wednesday, output of kharif foodgrains in 2007-08 will reach 112.24 million tonnes (mt). This is 1.72 mt more as compared to the last year, though below the record 117 mt level of 2003-04.

In foodgrains, kharif rice production is anticipated at 80.15 mt, the maximum since the 80.52 mt of 2001-02. But output of kharif maize is destined to cross 13 mt, exceeding the earlier record of 12.73 mt accomplished in 2003-04.

Whereas production of kharif pulses, oilseeds and jute are valuated to be higher as compared to the last year; agriculturists are going to yield record crops of cotton and sugarcane, at 22.94 million bales and 345.62 mt, correspondingly. In the same way, soyabean output, at 9.04 mt, would scale a new record.

At the close of the two-day National Conference on Agriculture for Rabi Campaign 2007, Dr P.K. Mishra, the Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Cooperation said, “We are making all efforts to ensure that the success of kharif gets repeated in the rabi season, especially in wheat, gram and rapeseed-mustard.”