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The cotton mechanisation programme initiated by the Punjab government in the cotton belt of the state and the establishment of the Centre of Excellence of Cotton at Bathinda might play a pivotal role in promoting diversification and increasing the area under cotton cultivation.
The state government is targeting 5.30 lakh hectares under cotton this year against 4.46 lakh hectares last year. The present agriculture cropping pattern in the state is dominated by the wheat-paddy rotation. Wheat and paddy cover major portion of the gross cropped area. Land under these two crops has increased over 78 per cent in 2012-13 from 47 per cent in 1970-71.
A senior official in the agriculture department told Business Standard that increasing the area under cotton is becoming difficult for because of assured return on wheat and paddy. He added, last year the area under cotton was 4.46 lakh hectares against the targeted area of 5.20 lakh hectares.
As far as production is concerned, it was 14.95 lakh bales (1 bale = 170 Kg). While this year the targeted area is 5.20 lakh hectares and the estimated production is 19.50 lakh bales.
The project aims at reducing the input cost by overcoming the problem of expensive labour and bring down the area under cotton cultivation to pave the way for high yield of wheat crop.
The Punjab Agriculture University and the state Agriculture Department in tandem with agro companies like John Deer, Bayer India and others would conduct adaptive trails on 1,500 acres of land in villages near Malout by practicing high density cotton cultivation, in which seven packets of cotton seeds will be sown.
John Deer would sow the cotton crop with the pneumatic planters whereas Bayer India would import growth regulator and Defoliant Chemical, to be supplied free of cost to the farmers for ensuring one-time picking of the cotton yield.
John Deer would also provide six cotton picking machines so as to ensure the smooth picking of cotton in the fields.
The state government would also set up a Cotton Cleaner at Malout Grain Market at a cost of Rs 1 crore.
The state government would provide a subsidy of Rs 4,000 per acre to the farmers under the programme.
In Punjab, 95 per cent of the area was under Bt cotton last year. Also, the state government would sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Monsanto for establishing a Centre of Excellence of Cotton at Bathinda.
