Ragi (Finger Millet)
Sow in October, harvest around February
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
No figures for your district: its government crop records list no area or yield for this crop. Priced from mandis across India.
₹17,000–₹26,000
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹4,000 to a profit of ₹5,000 an acre a season
- Suits: Rain is enough
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 5/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain is enough, even in a dry year.
Needs about 230 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 80 mm it can use in a normal year (30 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 200 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
Temperature
Grows best at 18–30 °C on average, and survives 8–35 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 28 °C / 21 °C
- Nov 26 °C / 16 °C
- Dec 23 °C / 13 °C (outside its best range)
- Jan 23 °C / 11 °C (outside its best range)
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Ragi (Finger Millet): 5 out of 10 (poor).
Not in the score: salt, sulphur, zinc and 4 more.
- Soil here is often more acidic than it likes.
- Many fields here are short of nitrogen, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of phosphorus.
- Most fields here are short of potassium.
Likes pH 6.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 6.1 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (February–March 2026): about ₹3,592 a quintal across India's mandis.
This week: about ₹3,500 a quintal, the middle of 42 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹192 a season after typical costs.
Minimum support price: ₹5,205 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.
- ₹2,260 2021
- ₹2,280 2022
- ₹2,800 2023
- ₹3,300 2024
- ₹3,530 2025
Prices are usually best in January.
Typical costs are about ₹21,000 an acre (seed, fertiliser, labour and hired machines, from the government's cost survey). They are spent whatever the harvest.
How to make it work
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Short of nitrogen Your soil is likely short of nitrogen.
Add about a quarter more urea than the usual dose, in two or three splits. A pulse crop in rotation also adds nitrogen.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
-
Short of phosphorus Your soil is likely short of phosphorus.
Add about a quarter more DAP or single super phosphate than the usual dose, at sowing.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
-
Short of potassium Your soil is likely short of potassium.
Add about a quarter more potash (MOP) than the usual dose.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.