Govt Procures 100 Lakh Cotton Bales Under MSP

New Delhi, Apr 8 (PTI) The government has procured 525 lakh quintals of seed cotton, equivalent to 100 lakh bales, under Minimum Support Price (MSP) operations up to March 31 of current cotton season 2024-25.

The procurement was done through the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) under Ministry of Textiles. One bale cotton equals 170 kilogram.

This procurement accounts for 38 per cent of the total cotton arrivals of 263 lakh bales and 34 per cent of the estimated total cotton production of 294.25 lakh bales in the country, an official statement said on Tuesday.

Among states, Telangana recorded the highest procurement at 40 lakh bales, followed by Maharashtra 30 lakh bales and Gujarat 14 lakh bales.

Other states with significant procurement include Karnataka (5 lakh bales), Madhya Pradesh (4 lakh bales), Andhra Pradesh (4 lakh bales), and Odisha (2 lakh bales).

Procurement in Haryana, Rajasthan, and Punjab stands at 1.15 lakh bales. In total, Rs 37,450 crore has been paid to approximately 21 lakh cotton farmers across all cotton producing states.

The MSP mechanism continues to provide remunerative prices to cotton farmers, protecting them from distress sales when market prices fall below the MSP.

To facilitate efficient procurement, CCI has opened 508 procurement centres nationwide. Several digital initiatives have been implemented, including on-spot Aadhaar authentication, SMS notifications for payments and 100 per cent direct payments through National Automated Clearing House (NACH).

The Cott-Ally mobile app, available in nine regional languages, enables farmers to access real-time information on MSP rates, procurement centres, and payment tracking.

All cotton bales produced by CCI are traceable via QR codes, by using block-chain technology to ensure transparency and accountability.