Cotton Textile Industry in India: Know about the History, Distribution of Cotton Textile Industry

History of Cotton textile industry in India

Candidates need to know about the important events in reference to the history of the cotton textile industry in India that can be helpful for them in their preparation:

• The emergence of the cotton textile industry started with the introduction of the first machinery in Kolkata in the year 1818 at fort Gloster. 
• Followed by this, another major event is the installation of machinery in Mumbai in the year 1854 by Cowasfi Nanabhai Davar.
• Now there are 125 mills in Maharashtra out of which 65 mills are in Mumbai only.
• Another major producer of cotton textile is Gujarat having 120 mills in which 73 mills can be found in Ahemdabad only. 
• Other major producers of cotton textile in India are Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore, and Kanpur
• West Bengal from where the origin of the Cotton Textile Industry occurred has 41 mills spread across the region. 
• Today approximately there are more than 1900 cotton mills in India in which majority of the mills are in the public and cooperative sectors. 

Cotton Production Distribution across India

India is the largest producer of cotton in the world where all the four known cultivated varieties of cotton are grown. More than 60% of cotton is grown in rainfed areas while less than 30% is grown in irrigated land areas. 

Cotton production in India has increased rapidly over the last few decades, nearly double the production before. A major producer of cotton in India is Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. India freely exports cotton to the rest of the world contributing 51% of the total exports. Cotton is exported to various countries including the USA, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Thailand. Bangladesh is also one of the major importers of cotton from India. 

Cotton Production Market Estimate

The current cotton market has an estimated worth of more than 45 billion which excludes the sales of cotton fabrics and yarns.