Top 7 Rice Producing States Of India

India is the second-largest producer of rice in the world. It produces and exports Basmati rice and many other types of rice. In 2019 the country will produce more than 100 tonnes of rice. India exports rice to several nations; Saudi Arabia, U.A.E, Iran, Canada, Oman, Yemen, Kuwait. India is the largest exporter of Basmati rice globally. It ships around 45 MLT of Basmati rice every year. Basmati is a long aromatic sender grain, which is grown on foothills in the Himalayas. Haryana, Punjab, UP, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh are the top Basmati rice producers states of India. Although many varieties of Basmati rice are also grown in other countries, they are not as good as Indian Basmati rice. India produces the best quality of rice, which is appreciated by consumers of all countries. 

Rice is the staple food of the Asian region. It is consumed daily with a variety of curries and soups. Some of the popular rice dishes are Biryani, fried rice, pilaf, nasi goreng, risotto, tahdig, and paella. Now, let us have a glimpse of the top 7 rice-producing states of India.

• West Bengal 

West Bengal ranks first in rice production. This state produces between 15-16 MLT paddy every year, which is about 14% of India’s total rice production. Around 30% area of West Bengal is devoted to paddy cultivation. The majority of rice is grown in Parganas, Birbhum, Bardhaman, and Midnapur districts.

• Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh is the second-largest rice producer state of India. It falls under the northern part of India and produces around 14 MLT of rice every year. Rice is cultivated in 59 hectares of the area in UP. You will find Jaya, Panth-4, Mahsuri, Pusa Basmati Rice, and Kasturi Basmati rice in the land of Uttar Pradesh. 

• Punjab

Punjab comes in second place with the production of 12 MLT rice each year. It is famous for the cultivation of Basmati rice. According to the remnants of history, Basmati rice belongs to the Punjab region. Basmati rice cultivation has started with Heer Ranjha; It is the oldest variety of basmati rice. Ranbir Basmati, Pusa Basmati, Mahi Sugandha, Ranbir Basmati, Basmati 370 are the most popular types of rice grown in the region of Punjab.

• Tamil Naidu

It is the most popular and largest paddy cultivating state of southern India. This state’s 2.2 million hectares area comes under rice cultivation. Aduthurai, Akshayadhan, Ambasamudram, Amsipiti Dhan, and Aravan Kuruva are some of the varieties grown in Tamil Nadu. As per the studies, it yields about 39000 kg of rice per hectare. The major rice-producing districts of Tamil Nadu are Villupuram, Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur, Thanjavur, and Thiruvannamalai.

• Andhra Pradesh

Ranking on 5th position Andhra with the total production of 128.95 lakh tonnes of rice. It contributes around 7% of the total rice production of the country. In AP, 22 districts practice paddy cultivation. West Godavari, East Godavari, and Krishana are the largest rice-producing Districts of Andhra as well as of India. Samael, Samba Madhuri, Saravani, Sasashri are widely found in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

• Bihar

Bihar ranks in 7th position in the list of top rice-producing states. It produces 73 MLT every year on 33 hectares of land. Bihar is adopting new technology to improve the quality and increase the production of rice. In winters, this state cultivates Gautam, Dhanlaxmi, Richharia, Saroj rice, whereas, during summers, Gautam Pusa-33, Pusa-2-21, C.R. 44-35 (Saket-4), Prabhat (only 90 days crop), Turanta rice are grown in Bihar.

• Chattisgarh

The state of Chhattisgarh produces 61 MLT rice and ranks in the seventh position. It is known as the rice bowl of India as 2000 varieties of rice are cultivated here. Chudi Dhan, Turia Kabri, Lal Dhan, Lal Chudi Dhan, Odisha are majorly grown in Chhattisgarh.

Read More: 6 Most Popular Recipes Of Basmati Rice

The Bottom Line:

Rice is among the most widely-eaten grains in the world, and its taste is loved by almost everyone.