As September comes around with the promise of the first harvests in a few weeks, data released by the Ministry of Agriculture on Friday indicate that the overall kharif season sowing acreage as of the end of August is 0.5% less than the previous year. This year, farmers across India have moved decisively away from what were once profit-making crops such as oilseeds as well as jute, whose profit margins continue to remain insignificant. The equilibrium in sowing acreage comes almost entirely from an 18% increase in cotton acreage and 9% increase in sugarcane acreage. Farmers across the country have chosen to invest more in cotton this year. The highest increase comes from Telangana, which has sown 18.24 lakh hectares of cotton against last year’s 12.5 lakh hectares, representing a 5% increase.