Copious monsoon rains spur summer crop sowing in India

Indian farmers have planted 79.9 million hectares with summer crops so far, according to the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare, up 18.3% from last year as robust monsoon rains spurred sowing in the world's leading producer of farm goods.Farmers generally start planting rice, corn, cotton, soybeans, sugarcane and peanuts, among other crops, from June 1, when monsoon rains typically arrive in India.Monsoon rains play a crucial role in agriculture, which employs 50% of India's 1.3 bill