Uzbek cotton: the turn of uzbekistan into the cotton raw materials base of the soviet state

Journal of History Culture and Art Research 
3 
arid and desert lands of Uzbekistan turned into agricultural lands. New large areas 
of cotton cultivation have appeared. 
The development of cotton production in its external appearance is related 
to the machinery and infrastructure of our republic. During the Soviet period, 
industrial enterprises producing agricultural machines and machines for the 
primary processing of cotton, cotton picking combines, cotton gins, tractor cotton 
seeders, spinning machines, as well as factories producing chemical fertilizers 
were built in Uzbekistan. A period of industrial growth has begun in Uzbekistan, 
cotton productivity has increased to an unprecedented level. 
As a result, Uzbekistan became a "cotton country", a powerful cotton base of 
the USSR. 
As a result of increased attention to cotton cultivation during the Soviet era, 
Uzbekistan faced the negative consequences of such a policy. 
These consequences were ecological and socio-economic in nature. From an 
ecological point of view, the well-known "victims" of cotton cultivation are the 
Aral Sea, degraded and pesticide-contaminated soils, people sickened by the use 
of herbicides and chemicals, as well as the spread of salt. sediments from the 
dried seabed into the air. Inefficient irrigation and excessive use of water 
resources led to the drying up of the Aral Sea, which is the fourth largest in the 
world and has become one of the saddest environmental disasters of our time. 
The economic and social consequences of this policy of the Soviets were 
more serious. These consequences determined the future fate of Uzbekistan. 
After gaining independence, Uzbekistan faced a wide range of economic and 
social problems. The foundation for most of these problems was laid during the 
years of Soviet power. 
The economy of the Uzbek SSR was mono-profile and was based almost 
exclusively on cotton production. According to statistics from the 1980s, this 
industry accounted for more than 65% of the republic's gross domestic product. 
Currently, less than 10 percent of cotton is processed in Uzbekistan itself. Most of 
the cotton was sent to Russia, where light industry was concentrated and finished 
goods were produced. In the Uzbek SSR, there was almost no light or heavy 
industry producing finished or semi-finished products, with the exception of 
agricultural machinery for cotton harvesting and some large enterprises, such as 
TAPOiCH, which were forced to evacuate from Ukraine and Western Russia in 
1941. If it had not been for the Second World War, Moscow would not have even 
thought of building an aircraft factory in a remote area like Uzbekistan. 
Uzbekistan was the single most important supplier of cotton to the Soviet Union, 
producing cotton and everything necessary for the main production and harvest 
of cotton - fertilizers and tractors. 
Apart from cotton, other resources were also brought from the Republic to 
the Center. 

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