(Lubbock,
USA, October 7, 2021)
India’s
cotton production might reach 43 million bales (170 Kgs each) by 2030.
The
Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), as part of Global Cotton Day
celebration organised an informative virtual event on Indian cotton sector on
October 7, 2021.
Productivity,
quality and contamination issues occupied the center stage of discussion.
Indian
cotton production is expected to be about 42-43 million bales (170 Kgs/bale) by
the end of this decade, stated Mr. G. Chandrasekar, senior journalist who has
been covering the Indian cotton sector for many decades. Indian consumption may
reach 40 million bales and the demand may see increase, added Chandrasekar.
Stakeholders
emphasized the importance of quality both in terms of contamination as well as
adulteration. Awareness of contamination has been increasing at farm level and
the issue at gin level needs addressing, stated Atul Ganatra, President of
Cotton Association of India.
The
event was graced by Mr. Piyush Goyal, Honorable Union Minister of Textiles,
Government of India, who emphasized the importance of enhancing the yield and
paying attention to quality. He highlighted the importance of research
translation, “lab to farm,†and nudged the stakeholders to work on the “culture
of quality.â€Â
The
minister encouraged the Indian textile sector to be a global player pointing
out to the yield per hectare issue in India, which is at 457 Kg/hectare that is
far behind the global average of 757 Kg/hectare.
While
yield and quality issues are getting the right focus, there is a timely need to
enhance the market for cotton both in terms of geographical outreach and
products. In this regard, possibility of collaborations to enable cotton as a
sustainable candidate in the technical textiles sector has to be given serious
discussion.
An
ongoing collaboration between Texas Tech University, USA and Aruppukkotai,
India-based Jayalakshmi Textiles has resulted in cotton-based oil absorbent.
Jayalakshmi Textiles has been a leading cotton spinner and its efforts to
venture into technical textiles products is a positive direction towards
diversification.
About
the Author:
Dr
Seshadri Ramkumar is the Professor, Nonwovens & Advanced Materials
Laboratory, at Texas Tech University, Texas, USA. He can be reached on email:
s.ramkumar@ttu.edu