CCI extends cotton procurement until Feb end: Tummala

Metro India News | Hyderabad 

Minister for Agriculture and Marketing Tummala Nageshwar Rao announced that, at the request of the state government, the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has agreed to extend cotton procurement until the end of February in order to avoid any inconvenience to cotton farmers in Telangana.

The Minister noted that both the Central government and CCI recognised the necessity of prolonging the procurement period while prioritising the interests of farmers, and they responded favourably to this request.

He further elaborated, “Given that the commencement of cotton cultivation in Telangana was delayed this season, the corresponding market arrival of the produce has also been postponed. In light of this reality, I communicated with the Central authorities, requesting an extension of the procurement deadline. Additionally, I urged Union Ministers Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay to bring this matter to the attention of the relevant officials and to take the necessary measures to safeguard the interests of the farmers.”

The Minister indicated that this year, cotton cultivation spans 45.32 lakh acres within Telangana, with an estimated production of 28.29 lakh metric tonnes of cotton.

To date, the CCI has acquired 16.15 lakh metric tonnes of cotton, amounting to Rs. 12,823 crore, from a total of 8,80,053 farmers. Furthermore, 2.24 lakh metric tonnes of substandard cotton have been procured through the market thus far. However, marketing officials have estimated that approximately 9.99 lakh metric tonnes of cotton remains in the possession of farmers within the state.