Malwa’s farmers are also rueing the fact that the excessive use of pesticides has drastically escalated their input costs. As compared to almost negligible production costs last year, this year there is a major gap in input-output index of the cotton growers. As per estimates, more than Rs 200 crore worth of pesticides have already been sprayed in the cotton fields of Punjab and in neighbouring states.

“I give Rs 11,000 as contract amount and a lot of money has already been spent on spraying pesticides,” says Sukhchain Singh, a contract farmer in Bathinda, who adds that he has already sprayed pesticide worth Rs 2,000 on one acre. “I am not sure whether I will be able to break even, leave aside the profits,” he says.

Syngenta India Limited, a leading MNC dealing in crop rotation chemicals, claims to have sold about 5 lakh litres of Presenofos, a pesticide under the company brand name Curacron. “The company has already sold Presenofos worth Rs 40 crore,” says Syngenta’s north cotton division regional sales manager Pritpal Singh Sidhu.

Umendra Dutt, executive director of Kheti Virasat Mission, an environmental NGO advocating natural farming, says nearly Rs 500 crore of pesticides have been used after the mealy bug attack. “I have the break up of various pesticides sprayed since then,” he claims.

“Given the persistent dry spell, there is no option but to spray the pesticides. The pest resurfaces and pesticides have to be sprayed again,” says Sidhu. “Productivity is likely to fall, the input costs have gone up and the farmers are the ultimate sufferers. But we are at the mercy of weather and will have to depend on pesticides till the dry spell lasts.” Experts say that Bt cotton required no pesticides and this is the reason the bug has attacked the crop.

... contd.