India is expected to see production of 330 lakh to 340 lakh bales (each 170 kg) of cotton in 2023-2024 cotton season that begins on 1st October, said J. Thulasidharan, president of the Indian Cotton Federation, in Coimbatore city on 24th September.

At the Federation’s annual general meeting, he announced that over 12.7 million hectares had been sown. Around 335 lakh cotton bales had entered the market during the current season, which would expire this month, and even now, with just a few days left in the season, 15,000 to 20,000 more were arriving. Some of it came from the northern cotton-growing States and the new harvest from Karnataka.

This pattern might persist during the following cotton season. The cotton Minimum Support Price (MSP) has been raised by the Central Government by 10 per cent, and market prices currently exceed the MSP. This year, there was little demand for cotton from the textile industry, and the majority of textile facilities operated below capacity, according to him.

The import of extra long staple cotton was hampered this season by an 11 per cent import charge, according to P. Nataraj, vice president of the federation, notwithstanding a partial easing for imports from Australia, South Africa, etc. By implementing best practises, the yield of the cotton plantations in India must be increased.

Nishant Asher, the secretary of the federation, claimed that despite being impacted by the recessionary trend, exports of yarn and completed textile goods have recently seen a resurgence.