HYDERABAD: Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageswara Rao on Tuesday urged Union minister G Kishan Reddy and MoS for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar to convince the Union government to relax the moisture content norm in purchasing cotton from farmers.
The minister wrote to the duo, highlighting several issues related to procurement of cotton.
In his letter, Nageswara Rao said that in view of the recent adverse weather conditions, the Centre should procure cotton with up to 20 per cent moisture content.
He also sought the intervention of Kishan and Sanjay to resolve the operational issues raised by the Telangana Cotton Millers and Traders Welfare Association to ensure smooth conduct of MSP operations during the 2025–26 cotton season.
“During October and November, owing to prevailing climatic conditions, the moisture content in cotton generally ranges between 12 and 20 per cent. However, the CCI currently procures cotton only with 8 to 12 per cent moisture content as per existing norms.
Farmers are experiencing severe hardship in obtaining MSP due to this restriction and have requested enhancement of the permissible moisture limit,” Nageswara Rao said in his letter.