National Bulk Handling Corp Pvt Ltd today said India’s cotton production is likely to fall nearly 4% on year to 31.8 mln bales (1 bale = 170 kg) in 2017-18 (Oct-Sep) from 33.1 mln bales the previous year. Heavy flooding in Gujarat’s key cotton growing regions led to major losses in the yield. Replanting of cotton in some of the flood-hit areas has also weakened prospects of the crop. Reports indicated that over 1 mln ha of acreage was affected in Gujarat’s Banaskantha, Patan, Surendranagar, Morbi, Jamnagar and Rajkot, which are dominated by the cotton and groundnut crops.