Sonepur: Cotton farming is gradually picking pace in parts of Subarnapur district. The district produces quality cotton which has good demand abroad. Given the current MSP fixed by the government, the district is expected to produce cotton worth Rs 48 crore in the current year. However, the farmers earlier used to resort to distress sale in the absence of procurement and good marketing facility. Those days are gone and now the traders from Maharashtra are buying their cotton at high prices.
These days, scores of farmers have shifted their focus on cotton farming in parts of the district. This cash crop known as ‘white gold’ is being cultivated in upland or non-irrigated lands, but black soil is the most suitable for this farming. Cotton farming is mainly concentrated in Birmaharajpur, Ullunda, Tarava and Sonepur blocks. Quality of the cotton produced in Birmaharajpur area is better than that of other areas. The district had a cotton spinning mill, which is now lying defunct.
Some farmers said that as cotton now has good demand abroad, the farmers are now reaping benefits from this crop which was once riddled with distress sales. For last several years, traders from Maharashtra are buying cotton from farmers here at a price higher than the MSP. More and more farmers are evincing interest in cotton farming. The climate has been very favourable this year for cotton farming. Farmers have started harvesting cotton and the process will be over in next 15 days.
Earlier, some people of Andhra Pradesh used to grow cotton on the farmlands in the district on a lease basis. Some of them even settled here. Local farmers learnt the techniques of the cotton farming from the Andhra farmers. Now, thousands of farmers are growing cotton at Tentulimahada, Badakhamar, Anandapur, Jatosingha, Bagabar, Mursundhi, Kenjhariapali, Bhalpadar, Khandahata, Durjantaila under Biramharajpur; Kalapathar, Jaloe, Sonepur and in some parts of Tarava block. The Central government has fixed the MSP of cotton per quintal at Rs 6,080.
A procurement centre is at Badakhamar under Birmaharajpur. Significantly, the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has decided to procure cotton from the farmers at MSP. However, farmers say, selling their produce to the CCI at the MSP will be a loss for them, as previous year the Maharashtra traders had bought cotton at Rs 9,510 per quintal. The farmers had good returns by selling the yield to the private traders. “We want to sell our produce to traders and cotton mills because of high price,” farmers said.
Shahadev Mahakur, a cotton farmer of Anandapur said that this year they have got a good harvest – 15 quintal per hectare. This year, cotton rate will be high and farmers are expecting good returns. When asked about the prospects of cotton farming, district agriculture officer Gourishankar Singh said that a decision was taken to open the procurement centre at Badakhamar this year. “In Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, cotton farmers have suffered crop loss. Cotton mill owners in those states are eager to buy cotton from Odisha. In view of such situation, the cotton farmers of Subarnapur are at a vantage point to make a big buck by selling their produce at the price higher than the MSP,” he observed.