Amidst increasing cotton prices and reports that Government procurement of cotton could remain slow, there’s something more disheartening for the industry!
Lower acreage and damage to the crop–owing to rains–may cause Punjab’s cotton production to be lower this season.
Reportedly,the season may see Punjab’s cotton production to be around 8 lakh bales, which would be nearly 35 per cent lower than that in 2018-2019.
The cotton output had dropped sharply to 6.45 lakh bales in the 2021-2022 season due to the pink bollworm insect attack against more than 10 lakh bales in the previous year.
Lesser area under cotton along with damage to the crop by rains and whitefly pest attack are being seen as the main reasons behind the expected decline in the overall yield.
A senior official of the state agriculture department said that they are expecting cotton output of 8 lakh bales this season. During the time of sowing, which is mid of April till May, farmers in several cotton-growing areas could not get sufficient canal water for sowing of the crop as there was a breach in the Sirhind feeder canal. Due to inadequate canal water supply, farmers decided to switch to paddy crop, the official further added, while giving reasons for the lesser area under cultivation.
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