The Ministry of Textiles has provided an official statement of rise in production of bivotine silk in the country in 2017-18. Registering an increase of 19 percent the production may rise to around 6,200 million tonnes (MT) in 2017-18 as compared to 5,266 MT a year ago.

The ministry said Muga silk has recorded highest ever production of 170 MT and has acquired a new growth momentum. It added that Bivoltine silk production has grown by 105 per cent in the last three years and has enabled substantial import substitution.

On the cotton sector, the textiles ministry said India has acquired the first place in the world in cotton acreage, with an area of around 105 lakh hectares.

The ministry said that India has emerged the largest producer of cotton in the world, with a production of 345 lakh bales in 2016-17. India is also the second largest exporter of cotton.

Besides, it said a total of 3,504 cases have been approved under Amended Technology Fund Scheme (ATUFS), with a projected investment of Rs 12,426 crore against government subsidy of Rs 956.50 crore. These new projects have the potential to create about one lakh new jobs, in addition to supporting about 3 lakh existing employees.

In the present cotton season 2017-18, 88.31 lakh bales of kapas had arrived till December 13, 2017, out of which, 3.62 lakh bales have been procured by Cotton Corporation of India under Minimum Support Price operations.