Cotton output down by 400,000 bales in one district

The switching over of farmers from cotton to sugarcane growing in prime cotton belt will hit hard the economic growth as only in one southern Punjab district, cotton output dwindled by 400,000 bales, causing around rupees six billion losses.
This changing pattern could cause a loss of billions of rupees a year to the national exchequer apart from causing severe long-term environmental degradation, sources told Business Recorder on Wednesday.
The government failure to stop the "influential" investors from establishing sugar mills in the prime cotton belt, historically famous for cotton crop, had started harming the national economy, sources said.
According to initial estimates, this change in crops sowing pattern in one of southern districts, which is part of prime cotton sowing area, could cause a loss of rupees six billion a year. The sources said that a survey was being carried out in Punjab's southern districts to assess the total losses the national economy was suffering due to this change.
The survey is being conducted at a time, when the influential investors have already established sugar mills. The Federal government has asked the Punjab authorities not to allow the establishment of new sugar mills until the proposed new study of agricultural zoning was finalised.
The agriculture zoning and mapping is also believed to be an exercise in futility as the sugar mills have already been established by the well-connected political people.
The sources said that conducting the study on agricultural zoning had become necessary. Under the proposed study, the government would designate certain areas for specified crops. Sugarcane has replaced cotton due to establishment of sugar industry in the belt, they said. Similarly, rice was grown in the areas where other crops could give better yields, they added.
The sugarcane growing in cotton belt would have worst impact on overall ecology. The proposed study would take input from the already conducted study of agro-climatic zones, which was conducted by Meteorological Department and the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal). Under this study, agriculture environment was classified into around 50 agro-climatic zones.
According to some analysts, the idea of agricultural zoning could not be implemented without the government announced some kinds of subsidies to the farmers. The Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has already given guidelines. But these guidelines are the least consulted by the people who set up industries.
The National Environment Policy 2005 is also of the view that it is binding on the government to ensure protection and preservation of prime agricultural land from conversion for other uses through introduction of land use planning and zoning, they said.
The analysts are of the view that the government could have stopped investors from establishing sugar mills in the prime cotton belt through the use of already stated policy. It was the lack of the past governments and political manoeuvring, which has started damaging the country.