"India leads the world in cotton acreage yet lags in productivity." Examine the causes and assess whether the Mission for Cotton Productivity can close the yield gap.

India grows cotton on 114.84 lakh ha, about 38% of the world's cotton area [1]. Yet it harvests only about 447 kg lint/ha, compared with 1,830 kg/ha in Brazil and 1,065 kg/ha in the US [2]. The ₹5,659.22 crore Mission for Cotton Productivity (2026–31) can narrow this gap, but on its own it is unlikely to close it [3].

Causes of low productivity

• Rain-fed farming: about 67% of cotton depends on rainfall, so erratic monsoons cut yields [2].
• Outdated seed technology: the Parliamentary Standing Committee (2024) called India's seeds "outdated". Bt hybrids must be bought every season, which pushes farmers into debt [2].
• Poor agronomy: fields are watered on canal schedules rather than when the crop needs water, and cotton is grown year after year without crop rotation, which weakens the soil [2].
• Low plant density: NFSM demonstrations of HDPS gave yield gains of about 40%, and Closer Spacing over 32% [1]. This shows how far ordinary farm practice lags.

Strengths of the Mission

• Covers 140 districts in 14 states and about 32 lakh farmers, with joint delivery by the Agriculture and Textiles Ministries [3].
• Promotes pest-resistant, high-yielding and ELS seeds and spreads proven technologies through KVKs and State Agricultural Universities [3].
• Targets a rise in yield from 440 to 755 kg/ha and in output from 297 to 498 lakh bales by 2030–31, in line with the 5F vision [3].

Limitations

• Ambitious pace: the target needs a rise of about 72% in five years. Even 755 kg/ha would be well below Brazil's yield [2][3].
• Narrow coverage: the Mission covers 24 lakh ha, about one-fifth of the cotton area [1]. The national output target still depends on farms outside the Mission.
• Demonstration plots vs ordinary farms: HDPS gains came from supervised plots with inputs supplied [1]. On rain-fed farms, results are uncertain.

Way forward

• Cap seed prices and protect new varieties under the PPVFRA so that private firms invest [2].
• Move to irrigation based on crop need and drip fertigation. Put about 20% of the area under early-maturing varieties, as CICR suggests [2].

The Mission addresses the main causes of low yields: seeds, spacing and extension services. To close the gap, though, it must reach farms beyond its 140 districts and be backed by water and seed-market reforms, as the Standing Committee recommended. Done together, these would make India's lead in acreage a lead in productivity and support SDG 2 and farmers' incomes.