Ten Top 10 Cotton Producing States in India
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When it comes to cotton production, India leads the world. Cotton is considered India's leading cash crop and the largest contributor to the nation's agro-economy. Cotton cultivation in India consumes about 6% of the country's total available water and about 44.5% of the total pesticides. India produces first-class basic raw materials for the cotton industry around the world and receives huge incomes from cotton production every year.
Cotton production depends on various factors such as soil, temperature, climate, labor costs, fertilizers, and enough water or rain. There are many states in India that produce huge amounts of cotton every year, but the efficiency varies from state to state. Here is a list of top 10 cotton producing states in India in 2022 which will give you a clear idea of the national cotton production scenario.
10. Gujrat
Every year, Gujarat produces about 95 bales of cotton, which is about 30% of the total cotton production in the country. Gujarat is an ideal place for growing cotton. Whether it's temperature, soil, availability of water and fertilizer, or labor costs, everything goes in favor of cotton irrigation. In Gujarat, about 30 hectares of land is used for cotton production, which is indeed a milestone. Gujarat is well known for its textile industry and it is only through this state that most of the country's textile revenue is generated. There are many textile companies in major cities such as Ahmedabad and Surat, with Arvind Mills, Raymond, Reliance Textiles and Shahlon being the most popular.
9. Maharashtra
In terms of total cotton production in India, Maharashtra is second only to Gujarat. Needless to say, the state has many large textile companies such as Wardhman Textiles, Alok Industries, Welspun India and Bombay Dyeing. Maharashtra produces about 89 lakh bales of cotton each year. Since Maharashtra is larger in area than Gujrat; available land for cotton cultivation is also huge in Maharashtra, amounting to about 41 lakh hectares. The major regions that contribute the most to cotton production in the state include Amravati, Wardha, Vidarbha, Marathwada, Akola, Khandesh and Yavatmal.
8. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Combined
In 2014, Telangana was separated from Andhra Pradesh and officially granted separate state recognition to carry out a language reorganization. If we combine the two states and consider the data up to 2014, the combined enterprise produces about 6641 thousand tons of cotton per year. Looking at individual data, Telangana is capable of producing about 48-50 lakh bales of cotton and Andhra Pradesh can produce about 19-20 lakh bales. Telangana alone ranks third among India's top 3 cotton producing states, previously held by Andhra Pradesh. Since Telangana is a newly formed state, the state government is constantly introducing new technologies and bringing modern machines to the scene to speed up production and contribute more to the state and country's cotton income.
7. Karnataka
Karnataka ranks 4th with 21 lakh bales of cotton each year. The main regions of Karnataka with high cotton production are Raichur, Bellary, Dharwad and Gulbarga. Karnataka accounts for 7% of the country's total cotton production. A decent amount of land, about 7.5 thousand hectares, is used to grow cotton in the state. Factors such as climate and water supply also support cotton production in Karnataka.
6. Haryana
Haryana ranks fifth in cotton production. It produces about 5-20 lakh bales of cotton per year. The main regions contributing to cotton production in Haryana are Sirsa, Hisar and Fatehabad. Haryana produces 21% of all cotton produced in India. Agriculture is one of the main areas that states like Haryana and Punjab are most focused on and these states use first class practices and fertilizers to increase production and crop growth. Over 6 hectares of land are used in Haryana for cotton production.
5. Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh also competes heavily with states like Haryana and Punjab in terms of cotton production. A whopping 21 lakh bales of cotton are produced each year in Madhya Pradesh. Bhopal, Shajapur, Nimar, Ratlam and some other regions are the main places of cotton production in Madhya Pradesh. More than 5 hectares of land are used for growing cotton in Madhya Pradesh. The cotton industry also creates many jobs in the state. Madhya Pradesh produces about 4-4-5% of all cotton produced in India.
4. Rajasthan
Rajasthan and Punjab provide nearly equal amounts of cotton in India's total cotton production. Rajasthan produces about 17-18 lakh bales of cotton and the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry is also active in many regions of Rajasthan to improve production and introduce high-tech farming practices. More than 4 hectares of land are used to grow cotton in Rajasthan. The main cotton growing areas in the state include Ganganagar, Ajmer, Jalawar, Hanumangarh and Bhilwara.
3. Punjab
Punjab also produces a huge amount of cotton equivalent to Rajasthan. Annually, the total cotton production in Punjab is about 9-10 thousand bales. The Punjab is known for its highest quality cotton and the fertile soil, ample water supply and adequate irrigation facilities justify this fact. The main areas of Punjab that are known for cotton production are Ludhiana, Bhatinda, Moga, Mansa and Farikot. Ludhiana is popular for high quality textiles and resourceful textile companies.
2. Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is ranked 9th on this list. The climate and soil quality in Tamil Nadu is not outstanding, but compared to other states in India not included in this list, Tamil Nadu produces a fairly decent amount of quality cotton, despite the usual climatic and resource conditions. The state produces about 5-6 thousand bales of cotton a year.
1. Orissa
Orissa produces the least amount of cotton compared to the other states mentioned above. It produces a total of 3 million bales of cotton each year. Subernpur is the largest cotton producing region in Orissa.
Prior to 1970, India's cotton production was negligible as it depended on raw material imports from overseas regions. After 1970, many production technologies were introduced in the country, and a number of farmer awareness programs were carried out aimed at optimal cotton production in the country itself.
Over time, cotton production in India reached unprecedented heights, and the country became the largest supplier of cotton in the world. Over the years, the government of India has also taken many encouraging steps in the field of irrigation. In the near future, a significant increase in the production of cotton and many other raw materials is expected, since irrigation technologies and means available for irrigation are currently sky-high.
