Indian farmers are expected to raise the area destined to cotton crops by 15 percent in the 12 months ending in March 2012 because of the recent price hikes, says the Cotton Association of India. As a result, the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange of India predicts that the country’s cotton production may reach a record of 6.8 million tonnes, or the equivalent of 40 million bales, instead of the level of 5.9 million tones predicted by the Cotton Outlook journal, compensating for a decrease in Chinese and Pakistani cotton production due to bad weather. India already raised the land for cotton farming by 8.3 percent to 11 million hectares for the year ended this month.