Off Season Cotton Management Campaign Crucial To Get Better Yield

The District administrations ought to work together with farmers, Agriculture Department employees, and farmers to boost cotton production.

Off Season Cotton Management Campaign Crucial To Get Better Yield

The District administrations ought to work together with farmers, Agriculture Department employees, and farmers to boost cotton production.

Captain Saqib Zafar, Additional Chief Secretary for South Punjab, made the following remarks while presiding over a review meeting of ongoing activities pertaining to the cotton action plan 2023–2024.

Participants included the deputy commissioners, chief irrigation engineer Khalid Bashir, directors and deputy directors of Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, and Rahim Yar Khan, as well as Iftikhar Ali Sahoo, Saqib Ali Ateel, Dr. Ehtsham Anwar, and Rai Babar, regional planning officer for the Bahawalpur region, and other stakeholders.

In the briefing, it was revealed that the Bahawalpur division has set a target for cotton cultivation of 2.314 million acres for this year to boost production, of which 1.445 million acres—or 62 percent of the total target—have already been brought under cultivation.

Iftikhar Ali Sahoo, Punjab’s Secretary of Agriculture, stated that cotton cultivation is ongoing and that all stakeholders should put in extra effort to increase per-acre production and cotton cultivation. “We should devote every waking hour to this cause. Not only will this benefit our farmers, but it will also stabilise the nation’s economy. The Punjabi government is making use of all available tools to support and mentor farmers technically, he continued.

He added that cotton’s support price of Rs. 8500 per maund had been timely announced and would be guaranteed in order to make cotton cultivation profitable.

In addition, Rs 600 million and Rs 11 billion in subsidies are given for certified seeds and fertilisers, respectively. He gave the relevant officials the order to strictly monitor the quota of the various districts under the track and trace system for fertiliser delivery.

Basic seed is the first offspring of pre-basic seed that is transmitted in a way that preserves its unique identity and purity.

This type of seed can be obtained directly from registered growers or used as a source for certified seed production. The field crop is examined by the Federal Seed Certification Department to determine whether it is suitable for additional seed multiplication. White tags are used to identify the bags of basic seed.