
Naturally coloured cotton revival hit by funding crunch, low yields
naturally coloured cotton
, which thrived commercially in the 1940s, is struggling to stage a comeback despite rising global demand for
sustainable textiles
and decades of government's efforts in research.
The specialty crop is currently grown on just 200 acres across Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, fetching Rs 240 per kg, 50 per cent more than regular cotton at Rs 160 per kg. However, farmers are hesitant to expand cultivation due to significantly lower yields.
Explore courses from Top Institutes in
Select a Course Category
others
MBA
Public Policy
Others
CXO
Degree
MCA
Leadership
Healthcare
PGDM
Product Management
healthcare
Artificial Intelligence
Technology
Design Thinking
Data Science
Data Analytics
Cybersecurity
Data Science
Project Management
Finance
Operations Management
Management
Digital Marketing
Skills you'll gain:
Duration:
16 Weeks
Indian School of Business
CERT - ISB Cybersecurity for Leaders Program India
Starts on
undefined
Get Details
"The productivity of light brown cotton is very low at 1.5-2 quintals per acre, compared to 6-7 quintals per acre for normal cotton. This discourages farmers from expanding the area under this crop," Ashok Kumar, Principal Scientist at ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology (CIRCOT), told PTI.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Villas Prices In Dubai Might Be More Affordable Than You Think
Villas In Dubai | Search Ads
Get Quote
Undo
Annual production from these limited acres stands at merely 330 quintals, underscoring the challenge facing this specialty crop that could potentially transform India's
textile sustainability
profile.
ICAR-CIRCOT
is currently focusing on light brown coloured cotton.
Live Events
Coloured cotton has ancient roots in
Indian agriculture
, with cultivation dating back to 2500 BC. Before independence, red, khaki and brown varieties of Cocanada 1 and 2 were grown commercially in Rayalseema, Andhra Pradesh, with exports to Japan. Traditional varieties were also cultivated in Assam and Karnataka's Kumta region.
However, the Green Revolution's emphasis on high-yielding white cotton varieties pushed coloured cotton to the sidelines. The crop's inherent limitations - fewer bolls, lower weight, poor fibre strength, short staple length and colour variations - made it economically unviable for large-scale cultivation.
Indian agricultural institutions have developed improved varieties, including DDCC-1, DDB-12, DMB-225, and DGC-78 by the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad. The Central Institute for Cotton Research, Nagpur, created Vaidehi-95, considered the most prominent among 4-5 available varieties.
Between 2015-19, ICAR-CIRCOT processed 17 quintals in demonstration batches, producing 9,000 metres of fabric, over 2,000 jackets and 3,000 handkerchiefs, proving commercial viability.
The environmental benefits are significant.
Traditional cotton dyeing
requires approximately 150 litres of water per metre of fabric, while naturally coloured cotton eliminates this requirement, potentially reducing toxic waste disposal costs by up to 50 per cent.
"Naturally coloured cotton has huge export potential. More government support is required to enhance production and value addition," Kumar said.
Despite premium pricing and environmental advantages, expansion faces hurdles including lack of seed systems, pest vulnerability, and high pesticide requirements typical of
cotton cultivation
.
"Nobody develops varieties as production is low and the market is not visible. Even textile mills are not ready to procure small quantities," Kumar explained.
The global market shows promise with growing demand from
environmentally conscious brands
, particularly in Europe, USA and Japan. Australia and China are investing heavily in research using traditional breeding and genetic engineering.
For commercial viability, coordinated efforts are needed across the value chain ' from developing farmer-friendly varieties to creating processing infrastructure and establishing market linkages with textile manufacturers committed to sustainable practices.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
4 minutes ago
- Time of India
FDI fueling telecom innovation; satellite internet key for rural India: DoT official
New Delhi: Pointing to the fact that 100 per cent FDI is already allowed in the telecom sector in India, Deb Kumar Chakrabarti, an Advisor at Department of Telecommunications (DoT) said that the country has been doing very well in this technology domain. "Lots of FDI basically have come from the telecom sector. FDI is not just money. FDI is technology. There are new management styles, many things that come into a new country. So, that way I think every country benefits if it gets a big share of FDI," the DoT official told on the sidelines of the 2nd India Space Policy Conference here in the national capital. Asked about the reforms made in the technology domain, particularly in the telecommunications, and what new innovations have been brought in, he, without getting into much specifics, said the government or the department are always technology agnostic. "It never talks up any particular technology to be brought in or not to be brought in. We are always welcoming technology. Because it gives a bigger choice to the consumers, which is ultimately it will be doing good only the common users of the telecom services so that way it's always good to have more and more choices in the market," he asserted. Speaking about demand for satellite internet services in India, he said that it will have good use cases in places where current telecom technologies are difficult to install. "It (demand for satellite internet services) will be growing, because there is a good amount of areas, but mostly in the village, rural and very distant areas where extending normal modes of communication like optical fibre or the microwave, it is very difficult, so I think that (there) satellite services could be an ideal replacement in those areas, and the more these satellite services are getting customised for this type of requirements -- I mean the size is reducing, the cost is reducing, no extra devices may be required in the future," he supplemented. "The simple smart phone may be sufficient to work on D2D type of services. I think it (satellite internet services) will have wider acceptance in the Indian market as well." Going ahead, he said India will also look at manufacturing goods needed for satellite internet services. "India has in a big way (wanting) to become a manufacturing nation. Call it satellite or any other technology, and if you see the new telecom policy 2025, which has been published very recently for the public consultation. There, we have declared that becoming a manufacturing nation, it's a mission for the Department of Telecom. In the coming five years, I think the department aggressively will be working towards that mission," he added. Bharat Bhatia, President, ITU-APT Foundation of India (IAFI), talking to ANI, said this two-day space policy conference has been one of the most successful events. "The sessions were very detailed and very elaborate. We went through a session on D2D today, then the 2nd day. And very intensively discussed all aspects of spectrum policy, regulation, market demand, all aspects of D2D have been discussed in a very detailed panel, with the participants from the government, from the industry, from the satellite operators, from the chip operators, and I believe this today conference itself has been one of the very successful events," Bhatia said. "Our aim is to bring all the stakeholders on one platform, make sure that there is a continuous dialogue between the policymakers and between the industry, between the operators, between the chip vendors, between the ecosystem. So the whole idea of this conference is to get everybody on the same platform. Thrash out whatever the issues are there and make sure that India moves forward. The session, the last session that we had today on the Viksit Bharat, that session really provided a way forward. How do we make India a developed country by 2047, and that particular session really stole the thunder, because we are trying to use the satellite technologies to make India a developed country," he further said. According to IAFI website, it is working for last 20 years with the prime objective of encouraging involvement of professionals, corporate, public and private sector industries, R&D organizations, academic institutions, and such other agencies engaged in development of ICT sector, in the activities of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT). On Day 1 of the conference, Thursday, Bharat Bhatia had applauded the opening up of the Indian space sector, adding that it holds immense potential for job creation and new investments. "India has opened up the space to the private sector and the way the policy has evolved, it is going to bring in a lot of new jobs, a lot of new investment," Bhatia had said. In India, the space sector was liberalised in 2020, and private sector was allowed to carry out end to end space activities. Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) was created in Department of Space for promoting, authorising and overseeing the activities of Non-Government Entities (NGEs) in space sector.


Time of India
4 minutes ago
- Time of India
India likely to gain 5% additional market share in UK within 2 yrs
Under the pact, which has been termed Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), tariffs on Scotch whisky will be reduced from 150 per cent to 75 per cent immediately, and further lowered to 40 per cent by 2035. On automobiles, India will reduce import duties to 10 per cent over five years, down from the current rate of up to 110 per cent, under a liberalised quota system. In return, Indian manufacturers will gain access to the UK market for electric and hybrid vehicles, also within a quota framework. India has provided duty concessions to the UK auto exporters only on large petrol and diesel vehicles and high-priced EVs, while protecting sensitive segments of the domestic automotive industry, especially mid and small cars and low-priced EVs, under the trade pact. No concessions are given to electric, hybrid, and hydrogen-powered vehicles in the first five years of the agreement. In the textiles segment, India is facing a duty disadvantage vis-a-vis Bangladesh, Pakistan and Cambodia, which have duty-free access to the UK market. Now this FTA would eliminate the tariff on textile imports from India, thereby enhancing its price competitiveness in the UK market. Products that are poised for exponential growth include RMG (ready-made garments), textiles, carpets, and handicrafts, where the removal of duties would create competitive advantages. India is expected to gain at least 5 per cent additional market share in the UK within 1 to 2 years of the implementation of the deal. The pact also announced tariff elimination (from 18 per cent at present) for Indian engineering exports to the UK. It could help double domestic exports in the next five years to over USD 7.5 billion by 2029-30. For digitally delivered financial services, the UK has provided access with respect to the various sub-sectors under both insurance and insurance-related, and banking and other financial services. With regard to the insurance sector, the agreement is expected to enable non-life insurance services and insurance intermediation, reinsurance and retrocession, and services auxiliary to insurance to expand operation in India. pti
&w=3840&q=100)

Business Standard
4 minutes ago
- Business Standard
We expect progressive improvement to come in: ITC CMD on demand outlook
ITC Chairman and Managing Director Sanjiv Puri on Friday expressed cautious optimism about the demand outlook, saying the company expects progressive improvement with the easing of interest rates, better weather conditions, and benign inflation at an aggregate level. A softer demand environment has weighed on businesses. Responding to shareholder queries on the performance of the FMCG business at the company's annual general meeting (AGM), Puri mentioned that a weak external sector, combined with food inflation and the dumping of products into the Indian market at an aggregate level, led to softer demand. 'Rural markets are better and improving,' he said. He added that there was a spike in inflation in the second half of the year, which coincided with the visibility of growth problems. Elaborating on the strategies adopted by ITC, Puri said that the company had taken several actions to improve internal efficiencies. Pricing strategies were calibrated in the wake of a soft demand environment, and the product mix was enriched. 'The outcomes will be visible in the quarters ahead,' he added. In the non-cigarettes business, FMCG leads the revenue mix. Citing an analyst report, Puri mentioned that the company's FMCG business had the highest addressable market size of Rs 5 trillion. More importantly, it had been created in a very capital-efficient manner. Demerger Demand Enthused by the demerger of ITC Hotels, effective January 1, 2025, shareholders quizzed the ITC chief on the possibility of spinning off other businesses. Puri backed the company's conglomerate structure, citing the institutional synergies built over the years and the shareholder value it has delivered. 'We look at the business strategy, competitive context, maturity of the business, opportunities, and the pros and cons of the current structure. Whatever is best is what we recommend for shareholder approval,' he said. Highlighting reports by a leading consulting organisation in 2002, 2006, and more recently in 2017 on the performance of conglomerates, Puri mentioned, 'There's always a debate—does separateness create larger value versus a conglomerate structure? This report actually says that in 50 per cent of the cases, they have delivered superior total shareholder returns.' He explained that the reason for superior shareholder creation is not a function of the degree of diversification, but how diversity is managed. 'Our distributed leadership, the governance structure we have, and the mechanism to leverage institutional synergies, is something that ITC has demonstrated, and it's a strength for us.' However, he also stated, 'Nothing is cast in stone. We continuously review this, and whatever is right will be done at the right time, just like we did for hotels.' As an example of ITC's institutional synergies, Puri pointed to the food-tech business, which leverages the capabilities of foods, hotels, and digital technologies. The food-tech platform has scaled up to 60 cloud kitchens across five cities and is progressively expanding across India. Food-tech is among the newer vectors of growth for ITC, as are its agri initiative ITC MAARS and sustainable packaging. Navigating Global Challenges Speaking on global challenges, Puri told shareholders that enterprises of the future will need to navigate the TURN—a critical point shaped by Turbulence, Uncertainty, and Rapid change, which calls for Novel strategies. 'Future readiness is not merely about adapting to change; it is about anticipating, innovating, and proactively shaping the future. This is what the ITC Next Strategy has set out to achieve, redefining the next horizon of growth and competitiveness, creating larger value for stakeholders,' he said. He added that two pillars of the strategy were creating a future-ready portfolio and the need to build anti-fragile supply chains. 'In this milieu of turmoil, the extraordinary ascent of India as the fastest-growing major economy and now the fourth largest in the world indeed gives justifiable pride,' Puri added. Last year, the company outlined an investment of Rs 20,000 crore for the medium term, betting on the Indian economy. Puri reiterated the company's commitment on Friday and said that ITC had invested Rs 4,500 crore in the last two years. He said, encouraged by the promise of the Indian economy, the company had invested in eight world-class manufacturing facilities in recent years. 'These span areas such as FMCG, sustainable packaging, and export-oriented value-added agricultural products.' 'As we continue to scale new horizons, ITC plans to invest Rs 20,000 crore across businesses in the medium term,' Puri added.