DUSHANBE, September 20, Asia-Plus -- The Tajik government has lowered the projected national cotton harvest from 550,000 tons to 547,000 tons, Rahim Nosirov, an official with the agriculture and land-tenure department of the president’s office, said. 

He said cotton fields in Shahrinav and Hissor districts had been removed to plant gardens. 

”The government has received applications from several families from the Khatlon province, who want to resettle to the Tursunzoda district,” said Nosirov. “In their applications, they ask for plots to build houses; the government has granted the applications and provided plots at the expense of cutting down areas of cotton production.” 

Nosirov said the government action, taken on September 7 reduces the cotton target of the districts subordinate to the center (Tursunzoda, Shahrinav, Hissor and Rudaki). 

According to Nosirov, the targets of these districts have been adjusted as follow: Tursunzoda,

17,200 tons (the previous target was 17,800 tons); Hissor  11,000 tons (12,600); Shahrinav 5,500 tons

(5,900) and Rudaki 6,700 (7,100). 

According to the State Committee for Statistics, Tajikistan had produced 186,652 tons of cotton by September 20, which is 34.1 percent of the total national target. Cotton farmers in Khatlon have gathered 127,000 tons of cotton t, which is 38.6 percent of the province''s target.  Sughd has yielded

31,000 tons of cotton, 18.1 percent of its target, and districts subordinate to the center have yielded

28,500 tons of cotton so far, 61 percent of their target.