ISLAMABAD: Amid declining trend in cotton production, the textile industry is upset over the government's approval of dubious cotton varieties with low yield potential of 2.1 maan per acre, while varieties are available in the private sector. Has the capacity to produce 18 mands per acre.
The textile industry wants the seed varieties of R&D institutions in the private sector to be approved under different staple length standards to meet the export targets, mentioning that the textiles industry has achieved success in the financial year 2020-21. Imported 5.04 million bales of cotton, valued at $1.479 billion. In the first six months of the current fiscal year, 2.22 million bales of cotton are valued at $821.206 million. This means that cotton imports have so far drained foreign exchange reserves of $2.3 billion.
Therefore, the textile industry wants the cotton production in the country to have the capacity to produce cotton up to 18 man per acre in seed varieties in the private sector through the approval of the Punjab and Sindh Seed Council.
This has come to the fore in a letter of APTMA (All Pakistan Textile Association) dated January 19, 2022 to Fakhar Imam, Minister of National Food Security and Research, drawing his attention to the fact that the Punjab Seed Council has approved the varieties. has approved. To support public sector research institutes with very low yield potential of 2.11 pound per acre, while high yielding varieties with 18 pound per acre production capacity were not approved as they are from private sector R&D based seed companies . The Textile Industry in the letter asked the Federal Minister to intervene and ensure that the Punjab and Sindh Seed Council is to meet the domestic raw cotton needs of the textile sector to meet the export requirements of these high yielding fibers on the basis of subsidies. Approve varieties that are only in prime length. Target
When contacted APTMA Executive Director Shahid Sattar said that one of the main reasons for the decline in cotton production in the country is the shortage of high yielding varieties of cotton and the supply of uncertified and spurious seeds.
During the crop season 2021-22, around 70-80 per cent area under cotton cultivation was covered by uncertified seeds of uncertified varieties, which is expected to continue in the coming season due to poor variety approval system by provincial seed councils . The Punjab Seed Council, in its 55th meeting, could not consider the approval of high yielding varieties and no criteria were laid down to judge the variety in yield performance. Many more varieties with very low yield potential of 2.11 m/acre are also approved to support the public sector research institutes. High yielding varieties with capacity to produce cotton up to 18 mand per acre were not approved and this is because such high yielding varieties were from private sector R&D based seed companies.
How will these approved varieties showing low yield potential in the spot test tests conducted by Punjab Seed Corporation, perform in the field? APTMA officer asked the question.
In its letter, APTMA has also made its case showing details about the low yielding approved varieties and top 10 high yielding varieties in the letter which were not considered for approval. The data clearly shows that in the current 55th meeting of the Punjab Seed Council, only one private sector variety was approved, while the high yielding varieties were rejected using different methods.