While India has not approved herbicide-tolerant Bt (HTBt) cotton, farmers appear to be adopting it at scale. A new field study estimates that unauthorised cotton was cultivated on 65-72 lakh acres during the 2025-26 kharif season, accounting for 24-30% of India’s total cotton acreage. The study says the spread is being driven by labour shortages and the high cost of manual weeding.
The study, conducted by the South Asia Biotechnology Centre (SABC) with support from the Federation of Seed Industry of India (FSII) and National Seed Association of India (NSAI), covered 16 cotton-growing districts across Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. It combined farmer surveys, supply-chain assessments and laboratory testing of cotton samples.
HTBt cotton is Bt cotton with an added herbicide-tolerance trait, allowing farmers to use glyphosate for weed control. The study found that weed control using glyphosate costs ₹750-850 an acre, compared with ₹12,000-15,000 for manual weeding.
“Farmers are not breaking the law out of choice. They are paying a black-market premium because the regulatory system has not given them the technology they need,” said Ajai Rana, chairman, FSII. “When a quarter of the crop runs on unapproved seed, the regulation has failed, not the farmer.”
The spread of HTBt comes as India struggles with declining cotton production. Cotton output fell from 35.2 million bales in 2020-21 to an estimated 29.1 million bales in 2025-26, a decline of about 17.5%, according to government data. Productivity also fell from 451 kg per hectare to 431 kg per hectare over the period.
{{/usCountry}}The spread of HTBt comes as India struggles with declining cotton production. Cotton output fell from 35.2 million bales in 2020-21 to an estimated 29.1 million bales in 2025-26, a decline of about 17.5%, according to government data. Productivity also fell from 451 kg per hectare to 431 kg per hectare over the period.
{{/usCountry}}The government has attributed the decline to several factors, including lower acreage, uneven rainfall, extreme temperatures, pests and diseases, and farmers shifting to more remunerative crops. It has now approved a ₹5,659-crore Mission for Cotton Productivity to address these constraints.
Maharashtra has the highest adoption, at 58%, according to the study. Adoption is also high in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh at 66% and 49%, respectively.
The study estimates that the informal HTBt seed market is worth ₹820-880 crore. It also found that sales of legal Bollgard-II seed fell 22.3% nationally between 2022 and 2026.
Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide used to control weeds. As per the study, its use rose 26% from 27,721 kilolitres in 2024-25 to 35,642 kilolitres in 2025-26. It also found that glyphosate is increasingly being sold through underground networks in bulk quantities of up to 20-litre drums.