Domestic Cotton Sowing Area Reaches 9.253 Million Hectares

20-Jul-2026 05:50 PM

New Delhi. Thanks to improved sowing conditions in key producing states, the total national cotton sowing area reached 9.253 million hectares by July 17 this year; however, it still lagged by 0.587 million hectares compared to the 9.840 million hectares recorded during the same period last year.

Earlier, in the week ending July 10, a deficit of 1.441 million hectares had been recorded, with the acreage standing at 7.954 million hectares against 9.395 million hectares the previous year.

The ideal window for cotton sowing is rapidly closing across various states. The sowing process has largely concluded in the northern states of Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan. Sowing has also reached its final stages in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Telangana.

Notably, the five-year average area for cotton in the current Kharif season is estimated at 12.551 million hectares, whereas the actual acreage is trailing by approximately 3.3 million hectares. Bridging this gap will not be easy.