India Rice output may slump by 16 MT this season

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has apprehended that rice production
this year could be 16 million tonnes below the 2008-09 level due to
twin-impact of drought and floods.

Mukherjee, however, exuded confidence that there would be no supply-side
shortage for the foodgrain.

"We could have achieved higher growth but adverse impact of both drought
and later floods in some parts has affected the agricultural prospects
and particularly the khariff crop would be substantially affected," he
told PTI.

Though the Finance Minister endorsed the Prime Minister's Economic
Advisory Council's growth projection of 6.75 per cent this fiscal, he
provided a more pessimistic outlook on the farm sector. The PMEAC,
earlier this week, projected the decline in foodgrain production this
season by as much as 11 million tonnes.

India produced record 99.15 million tonnes of rice in the 2008-09 season