Farmers had planted kharif paddy across 693,000 ha, up 0.9% on year. At 693,000 ha, the acreage was also higher than the normal of 569,000 ha for the corresponding period. So far, farmers in 13 states have started sowing paddy, with Uttarakhand accounting for the highest acreage at 123,000 ha, up 1.7% on year. Sowing has also gathered pace in northeastern states. In Meghalaya, acreage was up 1% on year at 100,000 ha, while in Assam, the crop has been sown across 88,000 ha, up 8.3% on year.