MULTAN, Jan 10: The Cotton Crop Assessment Committee is expected to revise its cotton crop assessment from 14.1 to 11.00 million bales in a meeting here on Friday, Dawn has learnt.

The Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Livestock, Prince Mohammad Isa Jan Baloch, is expected to preside over the meeting at the conference room of the Central Cotton Research Institute.

Sources said the committee is going to announce a decrease in the production assessment while the target of the federal committee on agriculture is still 14.1 million bales.

Pakistan had picked more than 14 million cotton bales only a few years ago, but within three years, it succeeded in picking 11 million cotton bales only.

India, which was earlier picking 17 million cotton bales, picked more than 28 million cotton bales last year, and this year, the figure may reach 31 million bales owing to use of modern technology.

The textile industry in the country is claiming that the industry would need 15 million cotton bales.

Earlier, during the sowing period, the government assessment had showed the figure of 14.1 million cotton bales for expected production. It means that the farmers have cultivated cotton on an area equal to last year, and they also spent on seed, tractor, irrigation, pesticide sprays, fertiliser and plant production to get the production of 14.1 million cotton bales.

This year farmers spent a large amount as compared to last year as they were forced to undertake three to four extra sprays on their crop due to the severe attack of mealy-bug, but now according to the proposed assessment of 11.00 million cotton bales, the farmers would have to bear the loss of extra three million cotton bales.

The share of cotton and cotton products in total exports is 68 per cent, but unluckily this sector is being ignored, and sources attributed it to lack of use of modern technology and performance of research institutes.

“While the other countries of the region are increasing their cotton production capability, Pakistan is going to reverse, said a source pointing out that the research work at the cotton research institutes is going to be privatised.