Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], September 24 (ANI): Raising concern over the plight of cotton farmers in Punjab, Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian on Wednesday urged the Centre to immediately direct the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to commence procurement of cotton at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 7,710 per quintal, as announced by the Union Government.
Addressing a press conference at Punjab Bhawan, the Minister highlighted that despite the arrival of “white gold” in state mandis, the absence of CCI has left farmers vulnerable, forcing them to sell their produce to private traders below the MSP. He said this has created deep disappointment among farmers who had relied on the Centre’s promise of procurement.
Khudian pointed out that, owing to the state government’s initiatives for crop diversification, the cotton cultivation area in Punjab has increased by nearly 20 per cent–from around 99,000 hectares in 2024 to 1.19 lakh hectares this year. The state government, under Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, has been providing a 33 per cent subsidy on hybrid cotton seeds along with other farmer-centric measures.
He said farmers chose to cultivate cotton with the assurance of MSP, but in the absence of procurement, they are compelled to sell their crop at distress prices to meet their financial needs.
Expressing strong dissatisfaction over the Centre’s “hollow promises,” the Agriculture Minister stressed that while Punjab’s farmers and government have fulfilled their responsibilities with sincerity, the Union Government must now act swiftly.
He demanded that CCI immediately begin procurement in Punjab’s mandis without any further delay, adding that even a small fraction of cotton being sold below MSP shakes the faith of farmers in the system, and the present crisis must be resolved at once. (ANI)