Agriculture Ministry may up cotton estimates to 35.2 mn bales for 2011-12

NEW DELHI: The Agriculture Ministry is likely to revise upwards the country's cotton production estimate by 3.5 per cent to a record 35.2 million bales for the current marketing year, a government official said.

The ministry releases four advance estimates at different stages of crop growth. In its second advance estimate, cotton production was pegged at 34 million bales for the ongoing 2011-12 marketing year ending September.

"The cotton production has slightly improved and it is expected to touch an all-time record of 35.2 million bales this year," a senior Agriculture Ministry official told PTI.

The change in output figures will reflect in the third estimate, which will be released later this month, the official said.

Last year, cotton production was 33 million bales. One bale contains 170 kg of cotton.

Cotton, a predominantly monsoon (kharif) season crop, is is planted from the end of April through September and harvested from October.

The country's two-thirds of cotton is produced in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Orissa where much of the crop is rain fed.

Bt cotton now accounts for an estimated 92 per cent of total cotton area and over 95 per cent of India's cotton production. There are an estimated 5.5 million cotton farmers with the average farm size of 1.5 hectares.