Cultivation of BT cotton, which has more output potential and requires far less pesticide sprays, has not been allowed by the government as yet, said Director Central Cotton Research Institute (CCRI) Muhammad Arshad.
Talking to APP here on Saturday, he said that although some growers have been sowing different BT cottonseeds but the government has approved none of them.
He disclosed that the two institutes of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) - National Institute of Bio-technology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE) Faisalabad and Centre of Excellence for Molecular Biology (CEMB) Lahore - have evolved the BT cotton varieties, IRFH-901 and CIM-482 respectively. Their cultivation on commercial scale however, has not been allowed by the government as research on them continues.