# Groundnut acreage up 9% as cotton-hit Punjab farmers switch 2026-08-07T20:48:20+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet National groundnut acreage in the kharif season has risen nearly 9% to 46.82 lakh hectares, as of August 7, from 43.11 lakh hectares a year ago, driven by farmers in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan following widespread monsoon and last year's MSP procurement. Gujarat and Karnataka saw declines due to rainfall deficits. Separately, in Bathinda, Punjab, farmers disappointed by repeated cotton failures from pests and erratic weather are testing groundnut as an alternative. The crop needs far less water than cotton or paddy, with just 3-4 irrigation cycles, and reaches maturity in 105-120 days. Officials from Punjab Agricultural University have provided the G40 variety, and first-time growers report yields of 7 quintals per acre with returns roughly 2.5 times investment. ## Coverage - thehindubusinessline.com - hindustantimes.com Tags: acreage, agriculture, groundnut, kharif, Monsoon, MSP Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/groundnut-acreage-up-9-as-farmers-in-up-mp-expand-area/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/groundnut-acreage-up-9-as-farmers-in-up-mp-expand-area/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.