Cotton leaf curl virus, a deadly pest, has badly hit the standing cotton crop across the country due to the use of uncertified and illegal BT cottonseeds, growers told Business Recorder on Thursday. The situation is very alarming and indicates likely occurrence of a huge cotton crisis in the country, as the pest is destroying cotton crop in Sindh and Punjab.
According to reports, CLCV has been detected in the major cotton cultivation areas of Punjab and Sindh and some 200-kilometers main belt of cotton from Sadiqabad to Burewala (Punjab) is the center of the attack, sources added. All major cotton crop areas of Punjab - Sadiqabad, Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Vehari, Raheem Yar Khan, Burewala, Mailsi, Sahiwal, Pakpattan, Liaquatpur, Jampur, Bahawalnagar, Bahawalpur and Gojra.
While, in Sindh Sanghar, Nawabshah and Tando Muhammad Khan are the other affected areas where cotton plants have been growing fast. Around 5 to 10 percent of Sindh cotton crop and some 10-15 percent standing crop have been hit by the dangerous pest, which attacked the fields last week, sources added. Cotton sowing had been completed a month ago and now the plants are in almost at final stage, as cotton flowers are expected to emerge within a few days.
This year, growers have sown Bacillus Thuringiensis (BT) cotton, instead of Nayab 73 and other such varieties after the government allowed BT cotton cultivation to achieve the cotton production target of around 14.1 million bales, they said. However, due to the cultivation of unlicensed BT cottonseed, CLCV has attacked the crop, sources added.
Despite rapid outspread of the pest, the concerned government officials are still oblivious of such disastrous developments taking place in the agricultural sector, they said. "Illegal BT cottonseeds have less resistance against the onslaught of CLCV, therefore, farmers are unable to control the pest attack," they said.
In spite of non-issuance of guidelines by the government to educate farmers about BT cotton, farmers have sown it in about 70-80 percent area. Now, with the emergence of this deadly pest, they are worried what measures they should take to save their crop, which is in the initial stage.
"Growers have cultivated CLCV-affected and uncertified seed, which have hurt the cotton crop and if the government does not take immediate steps to control the pest, it could hit 5 to 6 percent cotton production target," said a leading trader, Ghulam Rabbani.
Last year, mealy bug attacked the cotton crop but the timely monsoon rains perished it, while this year CLCV has attacked the cotton crop across the country and during the dry season it will spread rapidly and if the government fails to contain CLCV, it may hit cotton production target of 14.1 million bales, he said.
He said that licensed BT cottonseed has great resistance against pests and viruses. However, at present unbranded, uncertified and illegal BT cottonseeds are available in the market at cheapest rates and farmers have sown the crop in large number. Rabbani demanded of the government to take immediate action to control CLCV and arrange maximum pesticides for the eliminating the pest, otherwise, the country will suffer billions of rupees loss during the current season.