Rains, HTBT, pink bollworm drag cotton yields by 20-25%

Untimely rains, very poor excellent hybrid seeds made use of in HTBT (herbicide tolerant biotechnology) cotton seeds and incidence of pink bollworm in some regions have resulted in a extreme drop in yields in the just concluded kharif season.

Even with enormous need for fibre crop in the domestic and worldwide markets, countless numbers of farmers are not capable to cash in on a high value problem in numerous mandis. Industry experts peg the drop in yields and manufacturing by up to twenty-twenty five per cent.

“The weighty rain brought about by Cyclone Gulab in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have ruined the standing crop of cotton at a lot of destinations. Excessive rainfall in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Telangana could affect the generate of cotton, which is in the flowering phase,” a market place intelligence report by the Prof. Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural College (PJTSAU) has stated.

M Prabhakara Rao, President of the National Seed Association of India, has stated that late rains because of to La Nina and pink bollworm incidence are the major causes for very poor yields and manufacturing in cotton this year. “Use of very poor excellent seeds equipped in the identify of 4G (fourth generation Bt seeds) in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra is also an significant motive for the drop in yields,” he stated.

Ram Kaundinya, of Federation of Seed Industry of India and Alliance for Agri Innovation, concurs. “Cotton yields in the Kharif season are decreased by about twenty per cent mainly because of to unusually weighty rains in the major cotton increasing regions of West and South India during September to November 2021,” Kaundinya stated.

“Incidence of pink bollworm assault has led to some generate drop. The distribute of unlawful HTBT namely 3G, 4G far too is a motive for the drop in yields,” he stated.

HTBT in very poor excellent seeds

He stated the very low excellent of genetics and actual physical excellent of the seed made use of in the unlawful supplies has impacted yields. “This is a serious dilemma given that a lot more than twenty per cent of cotton space in the nation. The HTBT space in the South and West is about 30 per cent of the full cotton space there,” he stated.

“There is a need to have for a extensive tactic to arrest the distribute of unlawful HTBT. The authorities should occur down heavily on the seed manufacturing of the unapproved HTBT and its additional distribution,” he stated.

If it is not stopped, there is a hazard that it could possibly penetrate additional in the subsequent 3 years and injury the crop yields in advance of the lawfully accepted seed arrives into the market place, he felt.

A prime executive of a cottonseed firm, wishing to be anonymous, stated that the distribution community of HTBT cottonseed can hoodwink the authorities companies. “They are camouflaging the unlawful seed by packaging the content in these kinds of a way that it appears to be like packets of accepted brand names,” he stated.

In some regions in Telangana, farmers reported generate losses up to 50 per cent. Yields fell to 4-five quintals an acre from about 10-12 quintals that they reaped in a very good year.