Cotton arrival starts in Abohar, sold at Rs 7,131 a quintal

The new grain market here saw the arrival of narma cotton on Tuesday. Despite a meagre arrival of only 75 quintals and bad weather, traders began purchasing the cotton, citing “shubh mahurat”.

Once called the 'Manchester of Punjab' due to the highest cotton production, Abohar has suffered decline due to waterlogging in dozens of villages besides growth of hundreds of orchards. Paddy cultivation has also increased in the past few years due to the rise in groundwater table. Hence, the production of narma cotton and desi cotton has suffered much, some farmers present in the grain market said.

"This time, narma cotton produce is better than the last year as farmers have increased the area under cotton," said Jannat Bansal, a representative of a private cotton factory, who purchased the first lot at Rs 7,131 per quintal. Arhtiya Vikram Tinna also expressed hope for a good season.

As per the official cotton market bulletin, the lowest price of narma cotton in the last week of July was Rs 7,200 a quintal in the state.

Jaswinder Singh Jassi, former chairman of the arhtiyas' association, said if weather went well, farmers could be expected to bring produce in good quantity.