Highest HTBT cotton sowing in coming kharif: Shetkari Sanghatana
April 06, 2021
Shetkari Sanghatana (SS), the apex farmers’ body in Maharashtra, has claimed that 50 per cent of cotton sown in the State in the coming kharif season will be herbicide-tolerant Bt (HTBT) cotton, the cultivation of which is banned in India.
In 2020 kharif, about 42. 86 lakh hectare in Maharashtra was under cotton cultivation, that is 29 per cent of the total land under kharif cultivation in the State; .25-35 per cent of the cotton fields in the State have reportedly been put under HTBT cultivation in the last few seasons.
“The movement for HTBT cotton that started in 2019 has gained momentum and now farmers are cultivating more and more HTBT cotton. This kharif, 50 per cent cotton grown in the State will be HTBT. Now, we don’t have to launch a programme or movement to encourage farmers to grow HTBT. Farmers themselves are now inclined towards HTBT,” said Anil Ghanwat, president of SS, told