Hry records highest-ever cotton cultivation this year
SIRSA: Haryana has recorded the highest ever cultivation of cotton this year, with farmers sowing the crop over 6.5 lakh hectares in the state.
In 2014-15, growers had sown cotton over 6.47 lakh hectares, which was the highest cultivation till then. However, the crop was hit by the whitefly attack that year.
In 2016-17, the total area under crop in Haryana was 5.70 lakh hectares.
The farmers, who seem to have forgotten the pain of whitefly attack on cotton in 2014, have surpassed this year’s target of 6.3 lakh hectares set by the agriculture department.
Dr Dilip Monga, chief scientists of the Central Institute for Cotton Research, (CICR), Sirsa, said, “Cotton cultivation had seen a little decline after whitefly attack in 2014. But this year, the farmers of Haryana have broken all records in cotton cultivation. They have even crossed the target by an extra 20,000 hectares, which is a very good sign.”
Meanwhile, farmers in Sirsa district alone have sown cotton over 1.85 lakh hectares.
Talking to HT, farmer Naseeb Singh of Kalanwali village in Sirsa district said, “Farmers get good rates of cotton in the market. But there are no stable rates of guar and paddy. To earn well, most of the farmers in Sirsa dis-
GROWERS HAVE SOWN WHITE GOLD OVER 6.5 LAKH HECTARES, SURPASSING THE TARGET OF 6.3 LAKH HECTARES SET BY AGRICULTURE DEPT
trict grow cotton.”
Another farmer Navdeep Kamboj from Dabwali area said, “We had faced a huge loss during whitefly attack on cotton crop in 2014. But under the guidance of the scientists of and CICR and the Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University, Hisar (CCSHAU), we know how to grow cotton properly and how to keep an eye on weather, which may damage the crop.”
There are 11 other districts in
Haryana where farmers grow cotton evry year.
These are Fatehabad, Hisar, Jind, Bhiwani, Rohtak, Sonepat, Kaithal, Narnaul, Jajjar, Palwal and Rewari.