TIRUCHY: Sale of cotton in Thuraiyur regulatory market crossed the Rs 1 crore mark this year, the highest in the last four seasons. Those who opted for the native Surabhi breed of seeds, are laughing their way to the banks as there has been a bumper harvest. Surabhi variety was sold for 64 per kg, while others were sold for 56.20 per kg.
Cotton, largely cultivated next to paddy and banana, is cultivated in about 13,500 hectares in the district. 1,000 of the total 13,770 hectares were used for cultivating Surabhi.
A senior official from Agriculture Marketing department told TNIE, “The arrival and sale of cotton is more this year compared to previous year. Farmers are interested in selling the produce through regulatory market. So far, as much as 3447.75 quintals of cotton was sold for Rs 1.783 crores. Last season, the entire sale was just around Rs 40 lakhs. With few more days left for winding up the sales, we expect the trade value to cross 2 crore rupees, which will be the largest amount sold in the district over the past five seasons.”
K Subramanian, a cotton farmer from Thottiam said, “Based on guidelines/advise by agriculture department, we opted for Surabhi cultivation. As there is huge demand for Surabhi more than any other variety, it is a big success for us. However, the slight drop in price is disappointing.”
As the demand for Surabhi rose in the market, farmers are expected to shift to Surabhi cultivation next season.