chapter viii wool & wollen textiles industry - Ministry of Textiles

annual report 2011-12
CHAPTER V
COTTON
Cotton is one of the major crops
cultivated in India. It accounts
for more than 75% of the total
fibre consumption in the spinning mills
and more than 54% of the total fibre
consumption in the textile sector. The
twin objective of assuring off-take of the
farmer’s produce at remunerative prices
and making available adequate quantity
of cotton at a reasonable prices to the
domestic textile industry, are sought to be
achieved through timely announcement
of remunerative Minimum Support
Price (MSP) to the farmer and through
appropriate export-import intervention as
and when necessary. The New Textile
Policy aims at improving the quality of
cotton to that of international standards
through effective implementation of the
Technology Mission on Cotton (TMC).
Production and Consumption
●
●
●
●
During the last five decades, the
production of cotton increased from
30.00 lakh bales of 170 kgs each
in 1950-51 to an all-time record of
356.00 lakh bales of 170 kgs each
during 2011-12.
Acreage under cotton cultivation has
also increased and from 58.82 lakh
hectares in 1950-51 to a record high
of 121.91 lakh hectares in 2011-12.
The average yield has also increased
from 88 kgs in 1950-51 to 554 kgs in
2007-08.
Due to receipt of good prices by the
cotton farmers for their produce in
previous cotton season there has
been significant increase in cotton
acreage under cotton in cotton
●
●
●
season 2011-12. Acreage under
cotton cultivation has increased by
10% to 121.91 lakh hectares in 2011-
12 as against 111.42 lakh hectares
in the previous season. The rise in
acreage has been mainly due to
switching from other competing crops
viz., maize, jawar, pulses etc. With
various governmental measure to
improve farm practices and release
of Bt seeds have enabled the farmers
to sustain their continued interests in
cotton cultivation.
One of the reasons for low yield in
India as compared to world average
of about 745 kgs/hectare is that
nearly 65% of the area under cotton
cultivation is rainfed. Despite delayed
sowing and subsequent continuous
rains in Northern and Central zone,
with subsequent favourable agroclimatic
conditions, the crop progress
is satisfactory in all the cotton
growing States. As a result, the
cotton production in the country is
also expected to increase by 10% to
356.00 lakh bales as against the last
year.
The largest share in the total
production of cotton is of long staple
varieties followed by medium and
medium long staple. The share of
short staple is about 1% and the
share of medium & medium long
staple varieties was around 20% and
the remaining are long and extra long
staple varieties.
In recent years, there has been a
shift in the cultivation pattern and
farmers have switched over to high
59