KHUJAND, September 14, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- The mass cotton-harvesting campaign is progressing in the northern Sughd province, according to the Sughd agriculture directorate.

Local specialists expect average cotton yields in the province to stand at 1.7 tons per hectare this year.  Sughd farmers plan to yield 92,000 tons of raw cotton this year.  Last year, farming units in northern Tajikistan yielded 87,105 tons of cotton.

We will recall that employees of enterprises and organizations in Sughd have been sent to work in cotton fields in the province since September 11.  600 volunteers were sent to help farmers yield cotton in Zafarobod district on September 11.

In all, some 4,000 volunteers will help cotton farmers this year.  Primarily employees of enterprises that are currently not in operation are sent to work in cotton fields.

In the meantime, administrations of local universities and vocational and technical schools say they will not send their students to cotton plantations this year.