Gujarat farmers shift from cotton to oilseed crops

AHMEDABAD: Cotton cultivation is likely to decline across the Gujarat state in the current season. On the other hand, the state government, and traders alike, forsee a surge in cultivation of groundnut and other oilseeds.

As per an estimate of the state government, there will be a decrease of 10% in cotton acreage this year and against this, there will be an increase of 10% in the cultivation of oilseeds. Traders, however, see a decline of 20% in cotton cultivation.

The past kharif season witnessed 25.2 lakh hectares of area under cultivation for cotton in the state whereas for oilseeds, the area was 24.3 lakh hectares. Compared to this, the area under cultivation for cotton and oilseeds this kharif season is likely to be 22.4 lakh hectares and 27.2 lakh hectares, respectively.

High prices of oilseeds have been the primary reason for this shift. However, increasing incidents of disease spreading in the cotton crop in the last two years is also seen as a major reason for the shift from cotton to oilseeds cultivation.

���It is expected that this year there will be a change in the crop pattern. Prevailing high prices of groundnut have made the crop an obvious choice among farmers and may reflect in the decrease in area under cultivation for cotton,��� said joint secretary of state agriculture department PM Ansari.

���It is obvious that farmers will go for the crop that will reap maximum benefit for them. Prices of castor seeds are also high and this might be instrumental in encouraging farmers to opt for castor crop,��� he added.

Currently, groundnut is priced at Rs 550 per 20 kg whereas castor seed is priced at Rs 545 per 20 kg. A boom in international oilseed market has naturally reflected in the domestic market, which is at its peak right now.

Soyabean too is witnessing a growth in acreage. As per estimates made by the state agriculture department, groundnut, as compared to previous year���s kharif cultivation across 16.6 lakh hectares, may see a surge up to 18.5 lakh hectares this year.

Production of groundnut is likely to increase from 20 lakh tonne last year to 25 lakh tonne this year. Sources in the traders��� lobby confirm that groundnut production is likely to witness an increase of 15-20% to 19 lakh hectare, as compared to the last season.

Even sesame, which is sown in a limited area, is estimated to see a rise from 3 lakh hectare to 3.9 lakh hectare, according to a government estimate.

Rajkot-based Govind Patel of Deepak Enterprises agrees, ���Cultivation of cotton will see a decline of 15-20% and this could be balanced by increase in cultivation of groundnut. Rise in groundnut sowing could be attributed to high prices of groundnut which is supported by the problem of prevailing diseases in the cotton crop.

Cotton production has halved since past year. As compared to earlier times, when the production was 1,200-1,400 kg per acre, last year the production was mere 700-800 kg per acre.��� Groundnut cultivation allows farmers to go for a second crop in the rabi season, which is another big advantage for farmers. The cotton crop does not allow this advantage.