India cotton area 1.12 million hectare, up 27% on year.

Of the total sown area under the fibre, the area under Bt cotton was 1.05 million hectare, while 74,600 ha was non-Bt. In Punjab, cotton acreage was at 344,000 hectare, up nearly 44% on year, while in Haryana, the area is up 16.6% at 583,000 hectare. In Rajasthan, however, cotton sowing was at 110,000 hectare, down from 116,000 hectare in the year-ago period. Farmers in most of central and southern India start sowing the crop after monsoon rains.