SARGODHA, Jul 03 (APP):The government has evolved a scheme of incentives in order to cope with the prevailing situation and encourage farmers to grow more cotton crop, which is vital to increase exports of the country.
In this regard, the authorities concerned were working on war footing to encourage farmers to cultivate cotton and revive its production in the country as the national economy cannot be improved without a revolution in cotton and its allied industry.
A senior official of Agriculture Department Syed Zaigham Abbas told APP that minimum support price would be announced to encourage farming community and to bring maximum land under cotton cultivation. Special efforts were also being made to achieve higher cotton production and prevent diseases and pests, he added.
“All stakeholders in the field of cotton and research have to come together on one page and only with joint efforts of stakeholders, the cotton sector can be revolutionised,” he replied when asked about the current scenario of crop production in the country.
The government also plans to provide 100 per cent certified, pest-resistant and climate-tolerant high-yielding seed varieties to farmers during the coming season. The Federal Seed Certification and Registration Department has completed testing of 45,000 tons cotton seeds of different varieties.
Meanwhile, another senior official from the Cotton Research Institute said that output of major crop was on the decline, hoping the incentives and other measures would help revive and restore cotton crop in the country. The Central Cotton Research Institute, as part of its initiatives, has trained about 300 cotton growers on use of best crop management practices for achieving higher per-acre output.
It merits mention here that cotton crop sowing in the country during last season (2022-23) had witnessed a 1.1 per cent decrease as compared to last year. Cotton, major cash crop and industrial raw material for the textile sector, was on downwards trajectory due to various issues but thanks to the present government, which has realised importance of the cash crop, and was making all efforts not only to facilitate farmers but also achieve better yields.