The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI), which buys cotton at minimum support price (MSP) from farmers in all major growing states, is unlikely to buy cotton from farmers in Tamil Nadu this year.
A senior CCI official told The Hindu on Friday that it had purchased 67 thousand bales of cotton from farmers in October, November and December 2025 and paid the MSP. There are three main norms that the state should meet for the CCI to purchase cotton from farmers. The area under cotton cultivation in the taluk should be at least 3000 hectares and there should be a cotton ginning factory and a market center in this area. In Tamil Nadu, there is no cotton ginning plant near the growing center. Even if the farmers bring the cotton to the ginning station by bearing the cost of transportation, there should be a system to verify the quality of the cotton they bring.
In states like Andhra Pradesh, these norms are met. “We have identified nine locations in Tamil Nadu for opening shopping centers and have finalized four locations. If the farmers and the state government can meet the norms, the CCI will procure cotton from the farmers at MSP,” the official said.
With the drop in cotton prices in the open market, the CCI buying cotton in MSP has supported farmers in states like Telangana, Gujarat and Maharashtra. In Tamil Nadu, cotton is grown in two seasons and farmers sell at less than MSP.
Farmers should focus on bearing the cost of transportation and bringing the cotton to the ginning mill rather than selling at a lower price to traders, the official said.
In Tamil Nadu, it is said to produce 3.5 to 5 million bales of cotton annually.
Published – 02 Jan 2026 21:07 IST
