Govt should allow HTBt cotton cultivation; farmers need tech: Seed bodies

Seed industry bodies FSII and NSAI on Wednesday demanded that the government should allow commercial cultivation of herbicide-tolerant Bt (HTBt) cotton at the earliest, as the crop variety is being grown illegally in some parts of the country, creating a ₹1,500 crore informal seed market.

The Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) and the National Seed Association of India (NSAI) stressed the need to introduce high-yielding varieties and new technologies to boost domestic cotton production and reduce imports.

India's cotton production stands at around 29 million bales (of 170 kg each).

A study, Unauthorised Cultivation of HTBt Cotton in India: Extent, Drivers and Implications, was conducted by the South Asia Biotechnology Centre (SABC) with the support of these two associations. It covered 16 districts across Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan, combining farmer surveys, supply-chain assessment and ELISA-based gene testing.

 

"Unauthorised herbicide-tolerant Bt (HTBt) cotton was grown on 65-72 lakh acres in Kharif 2025-26, or 24-30 per cent of India's total cotton area, sustaining an informal seed market worth an estimated ₹1,500 crore," FSII Chairman Ajai Rana told reporters.

He informed that 1.25 crore packets of HTBt seed are being sold, currently worth ₹1,500 crore. The total size of the cotton seed market is 5.5 crore packets worth ₹6,000 crore.

Sales of legal Bt cotton seeds have declined.

"The government should fast-track the approval of HT Bt cotton," he said, adding that Mahyco has already made an application for this purpose in 2024.

The association also demanded changes in glyphosate label claims. The product is used for weed management in the cotton crop.

"Farmers are not breaking the law out of choice. They are paying a black-market premium because the regulatory system has not given them the technology they need," Rana said.

The study found that farmers are actively bypassing formal channels and paying a premium technology fee to the black market just to secure operational survival and crop insurance, the FSII said.

"Unchecked use of unapproved genes and unmonitored glyphosate spraying could breed resistant pests and weeds that devastate cotton productivity," said Dr C D Mayee, President, Indian Society for Cotton Improvement and President, South Asia Biotechnology Centre.

The study pointed out that labour shortages are driving the shift. Weed control with glyphosate costs ₹750-850 an acre, against ₹12,000-15,000 for manual weeding. Glyphosate use rose 26 per cent in a year, from 27,721 kilolitres in 2024-25 to 35,642 kilolitres in 2025-26.

"Due to a drop in productivity per acre, India has lost self-sufficiency in cotton production and become an importer of cotton. To regain self-sufficiency and revive the cotton economy, regulatory approval of herbicide-tolerant cotton and the pink bollworm trait should be a national priority," Rana said.