Chandan Kishore Kant / Mumbai August 22, 2008, 5:32 IST

The government is likely to increase the minimum support price (MSP) of cotton by 40 per cent or more for the cotton year 2008-09, according to official sources.
At a time when inflation has touched 12.63 per cent for the week ended August 9, such a measure may spell trouble for the $45-billion domestic textile industry.

Senior officials in the Ministry of Textiles told Business Standard that the prices of medium long stable cotton is likely to be increased to Rs 2,500 a quintal from the current MSP of 1,900 a quintal.