Cotton Cultivation in India:
Apart from extending the 11% import duty waiver on cotton, the Union government has raised the MSP for cotton for the 2025–26 season and expanded procurement efforts to support farmers facing price pressures and stabilize the textile industry. The move addresses both the challenges of rising imports and the need to safeguard farmer welfare amid a 15-year low in domestic cotton production. Cotton, popularly called “White Gold”, is India’s most important commercial crop, contributing about one-fourth of global output. Nearly two-thirds (67%) of the area is rain-fed, making cultivation highly dependent on monsoons, while only a third (33%) is irrigated. Cotton cultivation in India dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization, with textiles famed worldwide for their quality and craftsmanship, but under colonial rule India was reduced to a raw cotton supplier for British mills. India is the second-largest producer and consumer of cotton in the world, after China. Cotton contributes 24% of global output; India has the largest acreage but ranks 36th in productivity.
