Provincial Agriculture Department will spend Rs 31.299 million to augment cotton cultivation in rice producing areas of Shikarpur, Jacobabad and Larkana under "Enhance Cotton Production in Sindh" programme. Sindh Advisor for Food and Agriculture, Murtaza Khan Jatoi stated this while presiding over a meeting regarding enhanced cotton cultivation in the non-core areas.
The meeting reviewed the steps taken so far in this regard and it was pointed out that rice cultivation has been banned on the right side of River Indus and, therefore, cotton cultivation is being promoted in these districts.
Murtaza Jatoi said the programme envisages to save irrigation water used in rice cultivation and make it available for low delta cotton crop for which various facilities and incentives are being provided including 50 percent concession on supply of cotton seed bed sheppers, ridgers and planters.
He said the field staff of Cotton Development Project and Agriculture Extension Wing will provide necessary training and particularly inform about cotton cultivation technology including cultivation on ridges, maximum per acre sowing of plants, use of herbicides, protective and productivity measures and clean packing.
The meeting was informed that during the year 2003-04 5800 hectare of land was brought under cotton cultivation in Larkana District producing 19,661 bales, 6400 hectares in Jacobabad yielding 26,840 bales and 5035 hectares in Shikarpur raising 16,678 bales.
According to the recent second survey, during 2004-05 cotton was sown on 21,539 hectares with the production of 74,231 bales including 23,117 bales from 6330 hectares in Larkana, 31,702 bales from 9515 hectares in Jacobabad, 19,412 bales from 5694 hectares in Shikarpur district.
Murtaza Jatoi directed the officials to initiate better measures for next season and remain in close liaison with the growers for cotton cultivation on larger area. He said importance of this project should properly be communicated with the growers.
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