Despite an upward trend witnessed by Pakistan’s textile industry during last year, the Punjab government failed to keep up cotton production resulting in a decline of 34 per cent compared to last year.

According to experts, textile exports increased by 7.8 per cent during the first six months of the current financial year which led to earnings of $7.4 billion but the industry had to import cotton worth 321 million during the same period.

The country is currently facing a historic shortage of cotton due to the reduction in the main cash crop cultivation.

The State Bank of Pakistan in its report on the agricultural sector has revealed that the area under cotton cultivation has been steadily declining up to its lowest level ever, 2.2 million acres, since 1982. The negligence of the authorities has waned farmers off the country’s main source of foreign exchange for the past many years.