BENGALURU: Concerns over rising cotton imports and growing distress among domestic growers reverberated in the Lok Sabha Wednesday, with Raichur MP Kumar Naik flagging mounting challenges faced by cotton farmers, especially in Karnataka.During Question Hour, Naik said that despite India being the world’s second-largest cotton producer, farmers were grappling with uncertainty although procurement under minimum support price (MSP) scheme was expanded over the years. He said a sharp rise in imports is undermining domestic growers.“India is the world’s secondlargest cotton producer after China, with Brazil close behind,” Naik said. “Yet, in a deeply alarming development, govt data shows that cottonimports from Brazil surged by over 1,000% year-on-year over the last two years. Similarly, imports from the US also increased 200% during the same period.” Highlighting the impact on farmers, he said: “They are struggling with falling prices, rising input costs, and continued policy uncertainty. If this continues, we risk being heavily dependent on imports, thereby weakening our farmers and compromising longterm agricultural security.”In reply, textiles minister Giriraj Singh told the House the Centre remained committed to protecting farmers’ interests. “Via MSP and based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Cost and Prices (CACP), state and Central inputs, and productioncosts, we ensure farmers receive a minimum of 1.5 times the cost of production for their produce,” he said.Singh said that for 2025-26 season, MSP was fixed between Rs 7,710 and Rs 8,110 per quintal depending on quality — an increase of Rs 589 per quintal over the previous year. He also said authorities had opened 571 procurement centres across 149 districts in 11 cotton-growing states, and that over 90.5 lakh bales had been procured so far.Clarifying on the import policy, Singh said 11% duty on cotton was exempted between Aug and Dec 2025. “Subsequently, it was reintroduced in Jan 2026,” he said.But Naik argued that the temporary duty exemption had adverse consequences, emphasising domestic cotton prices had crashed amid global tariff pressures. Pointing to Karnataka’s performance, he said the state recorded the highest yield in the south, surpassing the national average. He said districts like Kalaburagi, Raichur and Yadgir had great potential if backed by strong institutional support.
