Farmers dejected as cotton prices remain below MSP
BATHINDA: Even as the state government is expecting bumper crop of cotton this year, farmers have been left dejected with prices remaining lower than the minimum support price (MSP) and Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) yet to enter the market.
Farmers who sold their crop in grains market here on Tuesday rued that they had to sell it below the Rs 5,450 per quintal MSP fixed for 2019-20 by the Centre.
Commission agents, while confirming that cotton prices are below the MSP, said this is just the start of crop arrival and the situation might improve later. They claimed that higher moisture content is resulting in below-MSP price. However, buyers who purchased the crop were not seen checking the moisture content.
Jaswant Singh of Aklia village, who had grown cotton on his six-acre land, sold the crop at Rs 5,070 per quintal. “Yesterday, the price touched Rs 5,300 per quintal, but today I had to sell my crop at lower rate. Farmers were expecting good prices this year, but so far prices have left us dejected. This is happening because government agencies are not stepping in to purchase the crop,” he said.
Asked if the higher moisture content is to be blamed for the below-MSP price, he said that buyers are not at all checking the moisture content.
Kuldeep Singh of Gehri Bhagi village, who cultivated cotton over seven acres, sold his crop at Rs 5,185 per quintal. “In April this year, we got Rs 6,000 per quintal price and were expecting good price this time also. We should be paid at least the MSP,” he said. “The government is promoting crop diversification. They should also ensure that farmers get good price for cotton crop.”
Commission agent Raman Kumar said, “Private buyers usually don’t give higher prices, but in many cases higher moisture content is also resulting in lower price. Crop arrival is expected to gain pace in the first week of October.”
A CCI official, on condition of anonymity, said that if needed, the agency will start cotton purchase from October 1. “We think this trend of private players giving lower price than MSP to farmers will continue, so we are ready to purchase the produce,” he said.
Director, department of agriculture, Sutantar Kumar Airi said that as per his information, farmers are not getting belowMSP price in the state. “But if it is happening, Punjab Mandi Board has to report this to CCI.”
Cotton has been cultivated on 3.93 lakh hectares in the state this year.
The area under cultivation has seen a considerable increase after a gap of five years.
In 2014-15, an area of 4.2 lakh hectares was under cotton cultivation in the state. In 2015-16, it came down to 3.39 lakh hectares. As whitefly attack that year destroyed crop over 60% of area, the cultivation fell to 2.85 lakh hectares in 2016-17. Cotton was grown over 2.91 lakh hectares in 2017-18 and it shrunk to 2.74 lakh hectares in the last season (2018-19).
COMMISSION AGENTS SAY THIS IS JUST THE START OF CROP ARRIVAL AND THE SITUATION MIGHT IMPROVE