New Delhi, July 28 - There is no reason to panic over the inadequate rains in the country for the meteorological department has predicted good monsoon in August, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said Saturday.

Replying to a special discussion on drought conditions in the country in the Lok Sabha, Pawar said except paddy crop, whose area of cultivation had fallen drastically, the figures for rest of the major crops in the country were comparable to the corresponding period last year.

He said wheat cultivation of 252 lakh tonnes this year had crossed all-time records.

'For the first time after Independence, there has been such cultivation of wheat,' Pawar said.

Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat are among the states which have contributed in this, the minister said.

Similarly, Pawar said, the rice harvest of 319 lakh tonnes was 'also unprecedented'.