Cotton output pegged at 361 lakh bales this season

Indian Cotton Federation (ICF) has estimated the cotton production in the country at 361 lakh bales (of 170 kg each) in the 2013-14 season even as prices are likely to ease after 'Sankranthi'.
Gujarat will be the top producer with 125 lakh bales, followed by Maharashtra (70 lakh bales) and Andhra Pradesh (65 lakh bales), as per estimates arrived at its board meeting last night, ICF president J Thulasidharan said in a release issued here.
The Central Zone, comprising Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, would have a crop size of 55 lakh bales each, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka (18 lakh bales each), Tamil Nadu (5 lakh bales) and Odisha (3 lakh bales), he said.

Though the crop has been delayed, it is likely to pick up and prices are expected to ease after Sankranti, Thulasidharan added.
While Cotton Advisory Board has pegged production at 375 lakh bales, Cotton Association of India estimated the output at 378 lakh bales.