Demand for Bt cotton seeds sharply down -Shishir Arya

-The Times of India

Nagpur: There has been a major dip in the demand for genetically modified Bt cotton seeds this kharif season. The seeds that were introduced by the US multinational Monsanto in 2002 have become mainstay of cotton farming since then. This year, there has been a sharp increase in use of local varieties of cotton seeds instead of Bt in the northern states. The area seems to have gone up but the supply of indigenous seeds did not keep pace, sources said. A similar trend was expected in other cotton growing areas of the country too.

According to the figures compiled by city-based Central Institute of Cotton Research (CICR), as against 3,000 odd hectares under indigenous varieties of cotton last year, there are 72,280 hectares this season in northern states. The data was collected from states' agricultural departments, said Dr Keshav Kranthi, director of CICR, a government research agency.

Haryana is leading with 36,000 hectares, followed by Rajasthan and Punjab. A similar trend is expected in Maharashtra and Gujarat too. The overall area under cotton is expected to go down this year. Sources in this sector attributed a number of reasons for lower Bt cotton demand. Last year, there were heavy losses in north due to a white fly attack. Though makers of Bt cotton do not claim protection against white fly bug, local seeds are known to have resistance against this pest, sources said.

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