‘Guj cotton yield lowest in 9 years’

The delayed monsoon this year has wreaked havoc on Gujarat’s cotton production and the subsequent yield for the cotton year (Sept-August) 2012-13. Recent estimates by the Cotton Advisory Board (CAB) on cotton crop for the year suggest average yield in the state has fallen to 611.51 kg of cotton per hectare, the lowest in the last nine years.

However, Gujarat still continues to lead in terms cotton production in the country. The state is estimated to produce 85 lakh bales followed by Maharashtra (80 lakh bales), Andhra Pradesh (72 lakh bales) while Haryana may produce 24 lakh bales, estimates CAB. Last year, Gujarat’s share in national cotton production was 34.58%, while this year it is estimated to fall to 25.44%.

Among the cotton growing states of northern and central zones, the farmers in Haryana are expected to get the highest margins with the state projected to have the highest yield. The sowing area in Haryana has remained the same as last year at six lakh hectares but the estimated yield has increased from 562 kg per hectare last year to 676.62 kg this year, which is much higher than Gujarat.

The yield at the cotton farms of Gujarat has fallen by 9.40% this year against 675 kg per hectare in the previous year. As a result, even the production of the crop is estimated at 85 lakh bales (1 bale = 170 kg) in the state, which is also the lowest in the last eight years. As per CAB estimates, compared to the previous year, the cotton sowing area has fallen by 21.83% to 23.63 lakh hectares and production is slated to be down by 29.16% to 85 lakh bales in the state.

Nationally, despite the delay in rains, the projected yield has marginally increased from 484 kg per hectare in 2011-12 to 488.89 kg per hectare in 2012-13. Among the top 10 cotton sowing states of India, seven states witnessed a rise in yield while Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu saw a fall in the estimations for the current year.
Overall, estimated cotton production in India in 2012-13 has fallen to 334 lakh bales as against

347 lakh bales in the previous year. The cotton sowing area has also shrunk marginally by 4% to 116 lakh hectares this year, from 121 lakh hectares in 2011-12.

Meanwhile Bt Cotton variety, Shankar 6 – famously known as ‘Gujarat cotton’ worldwide – seems like it will lose its top spot amongst exports. In 2011-12, of the total 129 lakh-bale cotton exports, the variety is believed to have the highest share. This year, the cotton exports from India are estimated to be around 70 lakh bales, of which the share of Gujarat cotton may be even lower.
The lower output of cotton crop in the state can be attributed to the delay in monsoon, said NM Sharma, MD of Gujarat State Co-operative Cotton Federation Ltd (Gujcot). “However nationally, the cotton production figures are not nearly as bad,” he said.

Interestingly, the cotton consumption by textile mills has shot up to 230 lakh bales this year from 218 lakh bales in the previous year, said commodity analyst, Biren Vakil. “The demand from denim producers is robust this year. And, they will continue to buy cotton in India,” he said.