At least 11 persons, including three women and seven children, of the same family were drowned after their vehicle plunged into a canal in Pakistan's Punjab province, according to a media report. &nbsp;

The accident happened on Friday in Sheikhupura district when the vehicle heading towards Khanqah Dogran from Qila Didar Singh skidded off the road and plunged into the canal, ARY News reported.&nbsp;

After being informed of the accident, police and rescue officials rushed to the accident spot and retrieved the bodies from the canal. The bodies were shifted to hospital for medico-legal formalities, the report said.&nbsp;

Rescue officials were of the view that the van plunged into the canal due to over speeding and the unavailability of a safety fence along the road.&nbsp;

"Among those killed are seven children, three women and a man, who belong to the same family," a senior police official was quoted as saying in the report.&nbsp;

Road accidents are common in Pakistan as every year thousands of people are killed in similar types of accidents.&nbsp;

In November last year, a rickshaw carrying family members in Punjab overturned and fell into a canal in which at least 19 people died. &nbsp;

At least 11 persons, including three women and seven children, of the same family were drowned after their vehicle plunged into a canal in Pakistan's Punjab province, according to a media report.

At least 11 persons, including three women and seven children, of the same family were drowned after their vehicle plunged into a canal in Pakistan's Punjab province, according to a media report. The accident happened on Friday in Sheikhupura district when the vehicle heading towards Khanqah Dogran from Qila Didar Singh skidded off the road and plunged into the canal, ARY News reported. After being informed of the accident, police and rescue officials rushed to the accident spot and retrieved the bodies from the canal. The bodies were shifted to hospital for medico-legal formalities, the report said. Rescue officials were of the view that the van plunged into the canal due to over speeding and the unavailability of a safety fence along the road. "Among those killed are seven children, three women and a man, who belong to the same family," a senior police official was quoted as saying in the report. Road accidents are common in Pakistan as every year thousands of people are killed in similar types of accidents. In November last year, a rickshaw carrying family members in Punjab overturned and fell into a canal in which at least 19 people died.

11 from same family drowned after vehicle plunges into canal in Pakistan: Report 

Mumbai: Cotton stocks in India, the world&#39;s biggest producer, are likely to fall by a third to 4.3 million bales at the end of 2015/16 season as drought slashes output to the lowest level in six years, a senior government official said. 
 
Lower stockpiles will limit India&#39;s exports in the next marketing year starting from Oct. 1 and support global prices that have risen to a two-year high on Wednesday. 
 
India&#39;s production fell 12.4 percent from a year ago to 33.8 million bales in the in the current year, the lowest level since 2009/10, Textile Commissioner Kavita Gupta said on Wednesday following a meeting of the state-run Cotton Advisory Board. 
 
Stockpiles were depleted after drought and pest attacks reduced yields, while exports rose 17.8 percent to 6.8 million bales, she said. 
 
The country mainly exports the fibre to Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam and China. 
 
Local cotton prices have jumped 32 percent in just two months due to dwindling supplies, forcing India to import cotton from Pakistan. 
 
&quot;A large amount of imported cotton is expected to land in July. It will help in moderating prices,&quot; Gupta said. 
 
For 2016/17 marketing year Indian farmers have cultivated cotton on 6.79 million hectares as at July 8, down 23 percent from a year ago, farm ministry data showed. 
 
Gupta said sowing is likely to pick up in coming weeks as monsoon rains have covered the whole of India. 
 
Cotton planting in India is likely to fall to the lowest in seven years in the 2016/2017 marketing season as farmers switch to other crops. 
 
(1 Indian bale = 170 kilograms) 
 
(Reuters)

Drought this year has slashed output to the lowest level in six years

Mumbai: Cotton stocks in India, the world's biggest producer, are likely to fall by a third to 4.3 million bales at the end of 2015/16 season as drought slashes output to the lowest level in six years, a senior government official said. Lower stockpiles will limit India's exports in the next marketing year starting from Oct. 1 and support global prices that have risen to a two-year high on Wednesday. India's production fell 12.4 percent from a year ago to 33.8 million bales in the in the current year, the lowest level since 2009/10, Textile Commissioner Kavita Gupta said on Wednesday following a meeting of the state-run Cotton Advisory Board. Stockpiles were depleted after drought and pest attacks reduced yields, while exports rose 17.8 percent to 6.8 million bales, she said. The country mainly exports the fibre to Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam and China. Local cotton prices have jumped 32 percent in just two months due to dwindling supplies, forcing India to import cotton from Pakistan. "A large amount of imported cotton is expected to land in July. It will help in moderating prices," Gupta said. For 2016/17 marketing year Indian farmers have cultivated cotton on 6.79 million hectares as at July 8, down 23 percent from a year ago, farm ministry data showed. Gupta said sowing is likely to pick up in coming weeks as monsoon rains have covered the whole of India. Cotton planting in India is likely to fall to the lowest in seven years in the 2016/2017 marketing season as farmers switch to other crops. (1 Indian bale = 170 kilograms) (Reuters)

Indian cotton stockpiles to fall by a third as output plunges

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