Budget may offer funds for pulses, cotton R&D

The government may announce a dedicated research and development (R&D) corpus for pulses and cotton in the Union budget for FY27, as it looks to address India’s persistent yield gaps, two government officials aware of the discussions said.

- Dhirendra Kumar & Vijay C Roy

The move aims to check India’s dependence on imports and reduce the crops’ vulnerability to climate shocks, they said.

Despite being world’s top producer of pulses and the second-largest one of cotton, India’s productivity in both crops remains well below global averages, leaving domestic supply exposed to external market swings while demand surges.