Government launches multi-ministerial mission to improve cotton productivity, quality, traceability, and sustainable fibre development

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the Mission for Cotton Productivity with a financial outlay of Rs.5659.22 crore for the period 2026–27 to 2030–31.

The mission has been introduced to address bottlenecks, declining growth, and quality-related concerns in India’s cotton sector. It is aligned with the Government of India’s 5F vision — Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to Foreign.

The initiative focuses on increasing cotton productivity through the development of High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds resistant to diseases and pests, while also expanding the adoption of crop production technologies through State Governments, Krishi Vigyan Kendras, and State Agricultural Universities (SAUs).

Key focus areas under the Mission include:

• Development of high-yielding, climate-resilient, and pest-resistant seeds along with production and protection technologies
• Expansion of cotton production technologies such as High Density Planting System (HDPS), Closer Spacing (CS), Integrated Cotton Management, and promotion of Extra Long Staple (ELS) Cotton
• Improving cotton quality through capacity building and modernisation of ginning and processing factories, including adoption of processing practices
• Strengthening cotton testing infrastructure with modern, standardised, and accredited facilities for quality assessment and benchmarking
• Branding and traceability initiatives under Kasturi Cotton Bharat aimed at positioning Indian cotton as a sustainable and globally recognised product
• Digital integration of market yards (mandis) to improve transparent price discovery and direct market access through e-platforms
• Promotion of cotton waste recycling and circular economy practices for resource efficiency and reduced environmental impact
• Diversification of India’s fibre base by including natural fibres such as flax, ramie, sisal, milkweed, bamboo and banana, along with promotion of sustainable textile production and innovation

The Mission will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and the Ministry of Textiles. The programme will involve 10 institutes under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), one institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and 10 centres under the All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRPs) on Cotton operating in State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) across major cotton-growing states.

Initially, the programme will focus on 140 districts across 14 States through State Departments of Agriculture and ICAR for scaling up technologies and covering 2000 ginning and processing factories.

The initiative includes development of climate-resistant and pest-resistant seeds, deployment of modern farming technologies, farmer training, quality improvement systems, traceability mechanisms, infrastructure strengthening, and promotion of sustainable fibres and innovation throughout the cotton value chain.

Under the Mission, the government aims to achieve cotton production of 498 lakh bales (170 kg lint each) by 2031. The programme also targets increasing lint productivity from 440 kg/ha to 755 kg/ha by 2031.

Approximately 32 lakh farmers are expected to benefit from the initiative. The Mission also includes promotion of Kasturi Cotton Bharat for certification and traceability, with a target of reducing trash content to below 2%.