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The future of the Bt cotton variety seems to be at stake in Sindh, while farmers are struggling against declining acreage grown in one of their major cash crops.
Due to water shortages, increased pest attacks, adulterated seeds and lower prices than before, producers are struggling to keep up with the pace of cotton planting.
About ten years ago, cotton producers were in a state of euphoria because Bt cotton provided them with a productivity of 60 to 70 kilograms per acre. The most appealing feature of Bt cotton for producers was its immunity to attacking the pink capsule worm, with the pest almost extinct between 2006 and 2014.
If sugar cane and paddy work well, farmers may switch completely from cotton to these two crops.
In Sindh, farmers were growing a variety of Australian Bt cotton called CRY1 that had been unofficially imported into the province. The Chinese variety CRY2 has been officially obtained by Punjab.
According to Mir Amanullah Talpur, a progressive cotton producer from Umerkot, the characteristics of these two varieties differed, CRY1 being more adapted to the Sindh climatic conditions.
Mr. Talpur is said to have been one of the first adapters of the Australian variety: he cultivated the CRY1 Bt variety from 1999 to 2000.
He thinks that at the beginning, because of the worm's inability to attack the cotton plant, producers had a busy day in terms of productivity per acre while ginners offered better prices.
But adulterated seeds then invaded the market from Punjab and degeneration settled. Mr Talpur pointed out that currently a hybrid of CRY1 and CRY2 is grown under the name of Bt cotton, adding that varieties tolerant to the pink capsule worm must be introduced to save the cotton sector from suffering.
In 2009-2010, Sindh produced 4.2 million bales on 1.56 million acres in cotton cultivation against a seedling target of 1.6 million acres. At the time, Sindh increased its seedling target from 1.56 million acres to 1.6 million acres, an objective that has remained constant since then.
Although the goal of planting cotton has been revised downward to 1.5 million acres during the current crop year (2018-2019), about 30% of the seedling target remains unfinished, as indicated by the figures available from the authorities responsible for controlling cotton cultivation. Last year, 94% of the goal was achieved.
Farmers such as Sindh Abadgar and Mahmood Nawaz Shah, vice-chair of the board of directors, see declining acreage as a serious sign for the province's cotton sector.
It is thought that researchers should be discerning: "Cotton has recently been promoted in the Kotri Dam Command Area. Producers comfortably farmed crops when problems such as water shortages, adulterated seeds and pest vulnerability began to hinder yields per acre. The situation has become quite alarming.
Water problems have already had a negative impact on this year's cotton crop due to non-existent irrigation water flows at the beginning of the kharif period (March to April) when the cotton is grown in the lower Sind: areas fed by the canals of the left bank of Sukkur and Kotri. dams.
As a result, cotton producers have opted for late and non-Bt varieties such as CRIS129, ARI, NIA. According to figures from the Department of Agriculture, an increase in acreage grown in non-Bt varieties – from 184,835 acres last year to 237,221 acres this year – was found.
Haji Nadeem Shah, a progressive cottongrower based in Matiari, said that while he was comfortable with his cotton productivity from 2018 to 19,000 per acre, water shortages had made him lose about 130 acres of cotton. He concludes that this year, the harvest has reached a better price (between 3,500 and 4,000 rupees per 40 kg) compared to last year.
After reaching a peak of 4.2 million bales of cotton, Sindh production now ranges between 3.4 and 3.7 million bales, including Baluchistan and Punjab arrivals at Sindh ginning factories. .
From the producer's point of view, cotton starts to harvest once the crop has started, whereas it would take about 120 days for another summer crop like paddy to mature.
The sugar cane needs about 12 months to be ready for harvest and depends on the payment of the millers. With the benefit of an early harvest, cotton is still lagging behind these two crops.
According to Hidayatullah Bhutto of the research institute of the Central Cotton Committee of Pakistan in Sakrand, the management of cotton cultivation is difficult and requires the seriousness of the producers. For native varieties of cotton, soil quality must be maintained and weeds controlled after 24 hours of sowing to ensure proper germination of the cotton plants.
As long as Bt cotton would not be affected by pests and productivity problems, farmers would plant the crop all year round and continue harvesting. This is no longer the case as cotton has lost its productivity potential.
According to Mahmood Nawaz Shah, with cotton remaining vulnerable to multiple problems, authorities should take research and development initiatives to stem the decline of the crop.
He believes that, despite the serious problems of sugarcane and paddy, producers are reluctant to switch to cotton. This proves that if sugar cane and paddy work well, farmers may switch completely from cotton to these two crops.
Posted in Dawn, Business and Finance Weekly, November 5, 2018
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