Farmers in the country had planted sugarcane over 4.69 mln ha till now, up from 4.46 mln ha planted LY. At 4.69 mln ha, area under cane is higher than the normal of 4.27 mln ha for the period. Normal acreage for the entire season, based on the average of past five years, is 4.9 mln ha. Sugarcane acreage in Maharashtra, where output is seen recovering in 2017-18 after a sharp drop this year, s up 45% on year at 0.91 million ha.