Cotton production dwindles for various reasons

As one of the leading cash crops of Pakistan, cotton, continues to suffer dwindling production, the academia has asked the farmers, private companies, government and academicians to join hands for collaborative steps to stave off the situation. In this regard the Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics at Sindh Agriculture University (SAU), Tandojam, organised a conference on Tuesday. The speakers ascribed to climate change, lag in the technological innovation in seed development, high input costs, unstable crop price and expensive fuel as the reasons behind the decline with spurious seeds lying at the root of the problem. Director Nuclear Institute of Agriculture (NIA) Dr Mahboob Ali Sial pointed out that developing certified and climate-resilient seeds has remained an unsurmountable challenge so far in the country which is being counted as one of the most climate-vulnerable countries. He believed that the research institutions and the plant breeders have a crucial responsibility to confront this challenge. He apprised that the NIA is already conducting research on 41 varieties of seeds for the same purpose. Senior Vice President of the Sindh Abadgar Board, Syed Nadeem Shah, explained that in addition to poor quality seeds, imbalanced use of fertiliser and sham pesticides are also contributing to low harvest and a consequent flight of the growers to other crops. He also held a lack of consistent policies and reliable agricultural data responsible for the crop's decline. Shah proposed that a breeders' advisory board comprising experts should be formed to steer all stakeholders. The Chinese expert Wang Xin Chen apprised that his team is working with Pakistan's private sector and research institutions to develop improved seed varieties for cotton and other crops.