Amidst the growing demand for cotton in India’s textile sector, the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) has stressed the critical need for intensified research and development (R&D) efforts and improved cultivation techniques. Raghavan Sampathkumar, Executive Director of FSII, highlighted cotton’s pivotal role in supporting the livelihoods of around six million farmers and generating employment for an additional 40-50 million individuals in related sectors.
Sampathkumar’s statements align with recent comments from Chandrakant Patil, Maharashtra’s Textiles Minister, who emphasised India’s potential to become a global textile powerhouse. With a target to reach $250 billion in textile production by 2030, states like Maharashtra, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu are leading the way with policy measures to establish textile parks, driving industry growth.
Recognising initiatives like the PLI Scheme for Textiles, the Kasturi Cotton Bharat program, and the National Technical Textiles Mission, Sampathkumar highlighted the necessity of promoting cotton cultivation to boost India’s competitiveness globally. Despite India’s heavy reliance on cotton for apparel exports, challenges like stagnant production levels and threats from pests and climate change persist. To tackle these issues, Sampathkumar called for increased investment in scientific research, particularly in biotechnological interventions, to enhance yield and production.
