Agri dept on toes to curb influx of spurious cotton seeds

Perneet Singh

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, March 21

With reports of spurious cotton seeds from Gujarat making their way into the Malwa region and a couple of instances coming to light in the recent past, the Agriculture Department has stepped up efforts to curb their inflow.

The department has also advised farmers to go for genuine varieties.

Dr GS Romana, senior farm economist, PAU, told The Tribune, “The Agriculture Department has been sensitising farmers on the issue, guiding them to only purchase cotton seeds of the certified varieties on bills. The farmers too need to understand that they may be saving a few hundred rupees on each packet of cotton seed in the short term, but they will have to bear the brunt of any decline in cotton yield that will cost them dear.”

He said though the practice of buying spurious seeds from Gujarat has declined over the years, but it hasn’t stopped.

Chief Agriculture Officer, Bathinda, Dr Gurditta Singh Sidhu said they have been regularly holding camps in villages to spread awareness among the farmers against spurious cotton seeds.

“We have been telling them to opt for cotton seed varieties recommended by the PAU. We have also sought the help of the Police Department in curbing the influx of spurious cotton seeds from the other states. Police personnel have been deployed at the railway station. We have also roped in other departments in our drive against fake cotton seeds,” he said.

He said that they have also been spearheading a campaign in this regard through radio and public address system in the villages. “This time, the price of certified varieties of cotton seeds has come down from Rs 800 to Rs 740 per packet, which has dissuaded the farmers from going for spurious seeds,” he added.

Earlier this month, the police had booked a dealer of a Gujarat-based company for selling spurious Bt cotton seeds to six farmers of Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda district.