Cotton farmers in Pakistan are between the devil and the deep blue sea, as they are facing pressure from the agriculture department for immediate wheat sowing on the one hand and a lull in the market on the other due to slow buying of cotton by the textile mills.
This situation has pushed the Pakistan Cotton Growers Association (PCGA) to draw the immediate notice of the government towards the crisis-like situation in the cotton trade.
In a statement, PCGA Chairman Chaudhry Waheed Arshad warned that wheat cultivation will not be possible in the country without protective measures for cotton farmers on war footing.
He said the process of cotton purchase by the textile sector is stalled, which has led to a situation where the ginning industry has stopped purchasing cotton and farmers have stopped picking cotton due to a distorted market mechanism.
The agriculture department is repeatedly issuing instructions to the farmers to cultivate wheat, while wheat cultivation is possible only when the farmers complete the sale of cotton and prepare the land for it, Chaudhry said.
It may be noted that unprecedented floods in Balochistan and Sindh provinces has rung up alarm bells in government circles, fearing a delay in wheat sowing ahead, which may led to food shortage and food security in the country.
Therefore, the government has started pushing farmers to start sowing cotton without any further delay.
Not only cotton but sugarcane growers are in deep trouble because of the dilly-dallying attitude of both the textile and sugar industries in procuring raw materials from farmers.
