Pakistan: Bt Cotton Cultivation to Start Officially Next Year

Pakistan is set to officially start cultivation of Bt cotton next year, according to Mohammad Farooq Saeed Khan, the country's Federal Minister for Textile Industry. "This decision would not only increase cotton production but would also play an instrumental role in getting rid of rural poverty," Khan said addressing a conference organized by the Ministry of Textile Industry. Farmers in Pakistan have started sowing Bt cotton on their own this year.

Pakistan is the fourth largest cotton producer in the world, after the United States and neighboring China and India. The top three countries are all biotech cotton producers. "India switched to Bt cotton and doubled its yield," said Khan. "But we failed to avail the potential of Bt cotton." He also said that cultivation of Bt cotton would also have positive impact on the socio-economic condition by involving female workers in the national mainstream.

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