Dastgir concerned over dwindling cotton production

Says Pakistan cannot import commodity due to limited resources.

MULTAN: Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan, while expressing concern over the sharp decline of 5.1 million bales in cotton production during the current season that caused a loss of Rs200 billion, has said Pakistan cannot afford huge losses and cannot import cotton due to limited resources.

Talking to a delegation of the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA), led by its Chairman Nawab Shehzad Ali Khan, the minister appreciated the interest of ginners in cotton production and said cotton was the backbone of economy and “we should work like a team to motivate growers to cultivate the crop over a maximum area.”

Dastgir announced that the commerce ministry would work in collaboration with provincial governments in an effort to enhance cotton production in the country.

Participants of the meeting discussed the role of Trading Corporation of Pakistan and the impact of cotton imports.

The minister said the prime concern of the government was to protect the interest of farmers besides boosting textile exports. He urged PCGA representatives to launch a campaign for educating farmers so that they could grow more cotton in a proper manner.

It was decided that a meeting of all stakeholders would be convened to prepare a comprehensive strategy to address the issues of cotton production, quality and import mechanism.

The PCGA chairman suggested that support price of seed (raw) cotton should be fixed at Rs3,000 per 40kg and it must be announced immediately to encourage the growers.

He said the national cotton policy was being delayed and sugar mills were being shifted to the core cotton zone by people belonging to the ruling party, adding all the three major political parties - PPP, PML-N and PTI - were violating the restriction on setting up sugar mills in the cotton zone.

He stressed the need for imposing a complete ban on the import of cotton and its thread from India till the end of current season and disposal of unsold stock kept in the ginneries.

The association chairman urged the government to announce a bailout package for the ginning industry, saying conspiracies were being hatched to harm Pakistan’s agriculture. He also asked the government to launch a vigorous drive and take urgent steps to achieve the production target of 20 million bales.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 28^th, 2016.

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