Cotton sowing begins on strong note

Sowing of cotton has begun on a strong note in the key growing regions of North India such as Punjab and Haryana, and Southern Karnataka, for the 2017-18 season.

Buoyed by the high prevailing prices, farmers are seen bringing in a larger area under the fibre crop and the seed industry expects acreages this year to increase by up to a fifth over the previous year.

Ashwani Jhamb, Director, Indian Cotton Association (ICA), said the overall cotton acreage will increase on favourable price conditions.

“But there will be a sharp surge in cotton cultivation in Punjab, where farmers are shifting from paddy, arhar (black gram) guar and partly from maize. The government has set a target of 4 lakh hectares of area in Punjab, as against 2.65 lakh hectares witnessed last year," said Jhamb.

Last year, North India’s total acreage was about 12 lakh hectares, out of which Haryana had nearly 5 lakh hectares under cotton.

Experts see Haryana and Punjab showing an increasein acreages this year, while Rajasthan may report a modest rise in the cotton area from last year's 4.42 lakh hectares.

Cotton prices are ruling at around ₹41,800 per candy (each of 356 kg), while raw cotton prices are hovering between ₹5,375-5,600 per 100 kg. Prices have stayed firm during most of the 2016-17 season on steady demand.

Latest estimates by the Agriculture Ministry have pegged the output for the 2016-17 season at 325 lakh bales of 170 kg each over previous year’s 300 lakh bales.

More than the price support, the availability of sufficient water and the near-normal monsoon prediction have sparked optimism across the cotton growing community.

In the North Region, the sowing, which began in mid-April is in full swing, while first picking is expected in the second half of September.

Cotton Association of India (CAI) President Nayan Mirani maintained that the monsoon would play a crucial role in making the cotton story a success for farmers this year. “Last year, we had seen some decline in acreage in North India, owing to pest attack and erratic weather. This year, the weather seems favourable and also the farmers are geared up to tackle any pest attacks,” said Mirani.

Though Mirani maintains that the cotton acreage will go up this year, the quantum of increase in the acreage will only be confirmed after the onset of the monsoon, predicted for later this month.

Gujarat, the largest cotton producing state, may see about a 20 per cent jump in cotton acreage, from about 24 lakh hectares last year.

Sowing, however, has started in the irrigated farms, while most of the non-irrigated regions will begin sowing after the onset of the monsoon.

The acreage had dropped last year on account of factors such as rising instances of white fly attack and pink bollworm infestation. The likely surge in area under cotton this year is expected to result in a 13-14 per cent increase in sales of seeds.

According to National Seeds Association of India (NSAI), cotton seeds sales will touch about 52 million packs (each of 450 gms) this year, highest since 2014.

“Even if there is a sharp increase in the area under cotton in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, the overall increase in the acreage will be around 10-12 per cent over last year.

Even in the regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka, there is not much impact of pink bollworm currently. So, we expect overall good growth in the acreage,” said Dr Kalyan Goswami, executive director, NSAI.

Goswami further added that seed sales in 2017 are estimated at 52 million packets, which was 46.1 million in 2016. Seed sales stood at 51.2 million in 2015 and at 41 million packets in 2014.

“The price controls on seed prices are the same as last year, at around ₹800 per pack, and there is no change so far,” said Goswami.

In Southern Karnataka, sowing is almost complete in the key growing region of HD Kote taluk in Mysore district.

Better known for growing the extra-long staple variety of DCH 32, planting in the HD Kote taluk has been completed in almost 90 per cent of the targeted area of 31,000 hectares, said officials of the State’s agriculture department.

Farmers are seen shifting towards Bt hybrids in the region this year, they added.

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