Cotton is most valuable commodity used in majority of world through textile industries as it provides basic raw material for production of fabrics made by cotton fibers. Raw cotton is delivered to ginning industries for manufacturing of cotton bales. Cotton seeds are separated from cotton and cotton is compressed to make cotton bales. Cotton seeds are used in manufacturing process of edible oil of cotton seed. The solid residual lumps that are discharged contain residual cotton seed oil will be used as cattle feed for good source of nutrients.
Suitable conditions for cotton crops are temperatures ranging from 20 to 30o C and gives good crop health in tropical and sub tropical regions. Snowfall is not suitable for cotton crop and successful cultivation is observed in regions that has at least 210 days without snowfall. Cultivation of cotton crops exercised with its water requirement through natural rainfall and irrigation. Average 60 to 110 cm of annual rainfall is sufficient for healthy growth of cotton.
Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, and Rajasthan hold almost 75 to 80 percent of total cotton production in India. Cotton is Kharif crop and requires about seven to eight months to mature. Initially rainfall or moist weather at time of sowing and sunny with dry weather at time of ripening is very useful for good crop health. Time of sowing and harvesting differs in different parts of country depending upon climatic conditions.
This year rainfall was very unpredictable and uneven in India and estimation of production of cotton is very difficult. Vice president and head of research development department of National Bulk Handling Corporation Mr Hanish Sinha has released first estimation of cotton production. Cultivation of cotton crop has reduced 2.46% by field size and followed in 119.6 lac hectors. Where estimated production of cotton bales last year was 3.48 crore cotton bales (as per Indian government) and 3.65 crore cotton bales ( as per Cotton Association of India), this year production is estimated to reduced to 3.32 crores of cotton bales. (1 Cotton bale consists roughly 160 kg of compressed cotton)