Cotton farmers in Maharashtra say the decision to cut prices of genetically-modified cotton seeds and slash royalty fees will significantly reduce their cost of production. The measure has come as a relief for individual cotton growers who are caught in crop failure, drought and indebtedness.

Maharashtra is India’s top state in terms of area under cotton cultivation. Genetically modified cotton is grown on 96 per cent of the total area under cotton cultivation in Maharashtra and the three cotton-growing regions—Vidarbha, Marathwada and Khandesh—see a sale of nearly 10.5 million packets of GM cotton seeds every cotton harvest. Because 96 per cent of the entire cotton growing area in India is under hybrids now, it is important to reduce the farmer’s cost of production.

Apart from a reduction in prices of GM cotton seeds, the royalty Monsanto Mahyco Biotech charges from seed firms in exchange for its patented cotton seed technology has been slashed by 74 per cent.

Farmers from Andhra Pradesh bought hybrids in Maharashtra due to the lower price last year. But those hybrids were meant for Maharashtra’s climatic conditions and soil and not suitable for Andhra Pradesh. So the uniformity in price makes sense.