Policy is undoing what science built. That's a challenge for Cotton Productivity Mission, Pg11

Key Highlights:

• The Union Cabinet approved the Mission for Cotton Productivity in April 2026 with an outlay of Rs 5,659 crore, running from 2026-27 to 2030-31.
• This mission aims to increase lint productivity from 441 kg per hectare (TE 2025-26) to 755 kg/ha by 2031.
• India's cotton production significantly increased by 193% between 2002-03 and 2013-14 following the approval of Bt cotton in 2002.
• Subsequent price control policies on cotton seeds, including the reduction and eventual abolition of trait fees, hindered innovation and led to a decline in productivity.
• India's current cotton yield of 441 kg/ha is substantially lower than global leaders like Australia (2,340 kg/ha), China (2,311 kg/ha), and Brazil (1,943 kg/ha) (TE 2025-26).
• India transitioned from a net cotton exporter to importing 4 million bales in 2025-26, with production declining by an average of 2% annually since 2014-15.

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Detailed Insights:

• Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee approved the commercial cultivation of Bt cotton in 2002, envisioning India as a leader in the biotechnology revolution.
• The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) initially approved Bt hybrids with the Cry1Ac gene and later Bollgard II (stacked genes) by 2006.
• This technological adoption led to India becoming the largest producer and second-largest exporter of cotton, with yields improving by 88% from 302 kg/ha to 566 kg/ha.
• Andhra Pradesh first imposed a Maximum Retail Price of Rs 750 per packet in 2006, drastically reducing the trait fee from Rs 1,250.
• The central government formalized these controls in 2015 through the Cotton Seed Price Control Order, cutting the trait fee by 74% from Rs 186.95 to Rs 49 per packet.
• By 2020, the trait fee was entirely abolished, making seed innovation commercially unviable for private companies.
• Consequently, Mahyco-Monsanto Biotech (MMB) withdrew advanced technologies like Bollgard II with Roundup Ready Flex (RRF) from GEAC consideration.
• Countries like Brazil and the United States routinely plant advanced multi-gene stacked technologies such as Bollgard 3 ThryvOn with XtendFlex.
• Brazil, where 92% of cotton is rainfed, leverages seed innovation to enable a second crop within the same agricultural year in 60% of its cotton area.
• The estimated accumulated cost of policy failure is 36.3 million bales in lost production by 2026, contributing to India's import dependence.
• The new mission's target of 755 kg/ha by 2031 would still leave India significantly behind current global leaders in productivity.
• The government faces a critical choice: either restore the intellectual property framework for private innovators or substantially fund public sector R&D to fill the technology gap.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Bt Cotton: Genetically modified cotton incorporating genes from Bacillus thuringiensis to confer resistance against bollworm pests.
• Trait Fee: A royalty or licensing fee paid by seed companies to the technology provider for the use of patented genetic traits in seeds.
• Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC): India's apex regulatory body responsible for approving genetically modified organisms for environmental release and commercial cultivation.
• Lint Productivity: The measure of the yield of processed cotton fiber (lint) per unit area of land, typically expressed in kilograms per hectare.