Record cotton yields signal hope for economy

Cotton production has witnessed a 23 percent increase compared to the previous year in Sahiwal division. Last year, 137,000 bales were produced, but this year’s harvest has surged to an impressive 179,000 bales, and of them 116,734 bales have hit ginning factories. The Agriculture Department says that cotton was cultivated across 106,000 acres. Cotton farmers received a commendable rate for their crop, with market prices ranging from Rs8,500 to 9,000 per maunds. The department attributed the improved yield to several key factors, such as effective crop management, favourable environmental conditions, timely guidance from the agriculture department, a proactive response from growers, and fewer incidents of insect pests during the early stages of crop growth all contributed to the successful harvest. However, the recent flooding in River Satluj, which affected 1,000 acres in district Pakpattan, prevented the total production from being even higher.