Rajasthan: Cotton procurement begins at MSP; CCI purchases at Rs. 7,860 per quintal. 8% moisture content is acceptable; registration on the app is mandatory .
Hanumangarh. Agricultural Produce Market Committee Secretary Pandit Vishnudutt Sharma begins procurement at the MSP by applying tilak to farmers. Bhaskar Correspondent | Cotton procurement at the MSP began on Tuesday at the Junction Paddy Market in Hanumangarh district. The CCI has formally initiated the procurement by applying tilak to farmer Balveer Singh and miller Mahendra Mittal. The CCI will purchase cotton with moisture content up to 8% at a rate of Rs. 7,860 per quintal. Any moisture content between 8 and 12 percent will be deducted as per regulations. The CCI will not purchase cotton with moisture content above 12 percent. However, only one trolley was purchased on the first day. The moisture content was within CCI guidelines. According to CCI Senior Commercial Officer Kewalkrishna Sharma, the contract process with millers is almost complete. The procurement process will accelerate further in the next day or two. Most importantly, this time, CCI has initiated online registration for cotton procurement at MSP. The "Kisan Kapas" app has been launched for this purpose. Only farmers who register on the app will be able to sell their produce to CCI at MSP.
Regional Deputy Director Devi Lal Kalwa, Trade Board President Kulveer Singh, trader Nitin Goyal, Accountant Mangilal Sharma, and supervisor Asaram were present at the procurement launch. The central government has set the support price for medium-staple cotton at ₹7,710 per quintal for 2025-26, and the MSP for long-staple cotton at ₹8,110 per quintal. In Hanumangarh district, cotton fiber is longer than medium-staple cotton and shorter than long-staple cotton. Therefore, CCI has set the price at ₹7,810. Last year, the price of medium-staple cotton was fixed at ₹7,121 per quintal and that of long-staple cotton at ₹7,521 per quintal. Due to low production last year, procurement at the support price was not possible. Traders purchased the produce through open auction. Last season, the average market price was ₹6,500 to ₹7,000 per quintal. This time, market prices are significantly lower than the support price, ranging from ₹6,800 to ₹7,300 per quintal.
Due to the market price being approximately ₹1,000 per quintal lower than the MSP, farmers were suffering significant financial losses. Consequently, farmer organizations demanded an early resumption of procurement. Cotton procurement at MSP has begun, and farmers are being encouraged to register. For the first time, the CCI has initiated an online registration process for farmers selling cotton at MSP. To achieve this, the Cotton Corporation of India Limited (CCI) has launched the "Kapas Kisan" mobile app. Farmers can install the app from the Google Play Store. Farmers can self-register through the app, based on their Aadhaar. The registration process began on September 1st. The deadline is October 31st, which is likely to be extended to December 31st. According to CCI officials, CCI has launched the app for registration for farmers' convenience.
Registration can be done by uploading valid land records, including details of the cotton sown area, duly certified by the relevant revenue authority/agriculture department/agricultural extension authority. After self-registration, the farmers' data uploaded to the mobile app must be approved by the relevant state government authority through the mobile app. For this purpose, a separate login ID will be provided to the state authority. To avoid overcrowding at procurement centers, CCI will launch a slot booking facility for registered farmers through the "Cotton Farmer" mobile app. Farmers can book slots on a 7-day rolling basis.
Farmers will be able to select a date as per their convenience, depending on the availability of slots. ^Government procurement of cotton at the support price has begun at the Hanumangarh Junction Paddy Market. Registration is ongoing on the Kisan Kapas App. CCI will purchase from the farmer only after registration. Farmers are being made more aware of the need for registration. Kewalkrishna Sharma, Senior Commercial Officer, CCI
