Punjab lifts ban on cotton cultivation

LAHORE: The Punjab government on Monday withdrew a ban imposed on cotton cultivation before 15 April, although it didn’t unveil any plan to provide irrigation water for the crop’s sowing.

The ban, which was imposed in the first week of February, was aimed at neutralising onslaught of pink bollworm on cotton crop.  An official said the enforcement of government decision proved effective as only around 800 acres of land could be sown with cotton till the last week, which was a negligible acreage. 

In January, the provincial agriculture department warned that early cultivated cotton crop would be destroyed under the Section 144, while legal action would be taken against the violators.  The official said cotton was sown more than 100 acres in the province, but it was destroyed by the agriculture department’s staff.

“This extreme step has been taken to guide farmers about good agriculture practices,” said a department’s aide. “It is highly desirable that cotton must not be planted before mid-April as early sown plants always attract onslaught of pink bollworm.”

But, the provincial authority has yet to reveal its plan of provision of canal water for the crop sowing.  A farmers’ representative said the department should have taken steps to ensure water supply. “Pakistan is already reeling under severe shortage of canal water,” he said. “And, it seems that provincial government did not consult with department concerned for ensuring water supplies.”

Farmer representatives also raised this issue at a last week’s meeting of federal committee on cotton. They said the government should ensure supply of irrigation water to the farmers so that the cotton is sown as planned.

The government has revised downward the cotton production target to 14.04 million bales for 2017/18. Area under cotton cultivation in Punjab will be 2.429 million hectares (six million acres) with a production target of 10 million cotton bales. Sindh will plant the crop over 0.650 million hectares to produce four million cotton bales. Balochistan will produce 0.038 million bales from 0.038 million hectares and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will harvest 0.002 million bales from 0.001 million hectares.

The target for 2016/17 was 14.1 million bales. However, cotton sowing fell short 20.82 percent in the Punjab, leading to overall 15.78 percent less sowing at national level. The reasons for less cotton sowing were mainly attributed to low cotton prices during 2015/16, which discouraged farmers to plant cotton.

Meanwhile, cotton arrival from the current crop of 2016/17 has increased 9.87 percent to 10.72 million bales, industry data showed on Monday.

Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA), in its fortnightly cotton arrival report said a total arrival of 9.76 million bales recorded during the same period in the preceding year.  The cotton season of 2016/17 has almost ended as fortnightly (March 16-31) flow of the lint was recorded at 3,492 bales only against 13,626 bales during the same period last year.

Out of these arrivals, 6.93 million bales were recorded from Punjab, up 15.72 percent against 5.99 million bales of last year. Arrivals from Sindh remained flat at 3.78 million bales.  The PCGA report said unsold stocks of 354,557 bales are with the ginners, whereas 10.16 million bales are sold to spinners and 202,356 bales to exporters.  Cotton output remained short by 3.5 million bales against consumption demand of 14 million bales.