Ministry challenges Punjab''s cotton output estimates

Ministry of National Food Security and Research has challenged Punjab''s cotton output estimates by pointing out that as the province faced 48 percent water deficiency, how could it possibly have achieved 10 percent increase in sowing compared to last season? Punjab which produces about 70 percent of total cotton crop missed the sowing target by around 2 percent with 5.6 million acres covered against the target of 5.7 million acres. The province claims that it is 98.3 percent of the target for the current season and is higher by 10 percent compared to 5.06 million acres during last season.
The country missed cotton sowing target by a wide margin of around 12 percent in the current crop season, which may hamper the production target of 14.37 million bales set for 2018-19. Official sources revealed to Business Recorder that cotton has been sown on 6.42 million acres against the target of 7.28 million acres.
Cotton crop prospects for the current season (2018-19) are not very bright after missing the sowing target and with severe water shortages production is expected to remain around 13.5 million bales. The country has missed cotton production target of 14.04 million bales as well as revised target of 12.6 million bales set for 2017-18 by around 7 percent.
Sources said that due to increased sugarcane cultivation in the cotton areas, delay in harvest of wheat and shortage of water, a decline in cotton sowing was registered. The Federal Committee on Agriculture (FCA) fixed cotton area and production target for the year 2018-19 as follows: Punjab was expected to cover 5.7 million acres and produce 10 million cotton bales, Sindh had to cover 1.53 million acres and produce 4.2 million cotton bales, Balochistan had to cover 0.074 million acres and produce 0.15 million bales and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had targeted to sow cotton on 0.012 million acres and produce 0.02 million bales of cotton.
According to the official figures, cotton has been sown on 6.42 million acres in the current season across the country against 6.5 million acres during the same period of last year .i.e. registered 2.03 percent shortfall. The sources said that decline in cotton sowing was recorded in Sindh which is the second major cotton producing province. Sindh has covered 0.8 million acres in the current season against the target of 1.53 million acres and missed the target by around 46 percent. It also remained short by 44 percent compared to 1.48 million acres in the last season 2017.