Vol. 11, Special Issue 11 (2022)

Author(s):
Prema Borkar

Abstract:
Maharashtra is one of India's most important cotton-producing states, ranking first in production and area. An investigation was conducted to investigate the growth performance, instability, and decomposition of cotton in the state from 1960–61 to 2021–22. Cotton growth and instability were also studied during the pre-introduction (1982-83 to 2001-02) and post-introduction of Bt cotton periods (2002-03 to 2021-22). Compound growth rates were estimated for this purpose by fitting the exponential function, and the coefficient of variation was calculated to determine instability. The cotton area and production increased significantly during the 1960s, 1990s, and 2000s. Cotton production and yield increased the most from 2000-01 to 2009-10. According to instability analysis, the cotton area was more stable than production and yield. The post-Bt introduction period saw higher growth in area, production, and yield than the pre-Bt introduction period. During this time, there was also a high level of instability, indicating that cotton production increased over time. According to the decomposition analysis, yield was one of the most important factors in the overall growth of cotton production, followed by the interaction effect. Improvements in cotton area, yield, and production in Maharashtra have increased due to favorable climatic conditions, improved farming practices, and faster technology transfer. As a result, the paper suggests that policies be implemented to reduce risk in cotton production through proper technology transfer and extension services. It also says that the high growth rate of the past few years should be kept up by making cotton production profitable.