Farmers in Jhenidah district of Bangladesh are expecting that this season their cotton crop would bring in better returns as new varieties of cotton were introduced in this season on the initiative of the Cotton Development Board (CDB) following the impact of worm ball insect on cotton crop last year.
Rupali HSC and Lalteer cotton varieties, which are less susceptible to pests, can produce cotton, double the volume, that the CB-9 and CB-10 varieties can produce. These varieties can produce maximum 7 tons per hectare, or 7 to 8 maunds per bigha, while high-yield Rupali HSC and Lalteer varieties can produce 18 to 20 maunds.
A cotton grower who has cultivated one of the new varieties of cotton is optimistic about production volume and is happy with CDB's purchase rate.
Farmers are expecting that the prices of cotton seeds will increase between Tk 2,200 and Tk 2,400 per maund, this year, which used to be sold in the last few years at Tk 1,800 to Tk 2,000 per maund. Farmers are expecting to generate a profit of Tk 15,000 per bigha, during current season.