The cotton stakeholders across the textile value chain has been demanding to bring back technology mission on cotton in a revised format with two mini missions focusing on technology development and technology transfer under the Ministry of Agriculture and another two mini missions focusing on clean cotton and branding Indian cotton textile products.
The technology mission on cotton announced during 1999 got closed in the year 2012 that had made India as the largest cotton producer and net exporter in the world.
P Nataraj, Chairman, The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) has stated that the Association has sent a representation to the Union Textile Minister seeking her intervention and empower Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to enforce certain regulations and discipline to curb malpractices adopted by certain ginners. He has appreciated the efforts taken by the Textile Minister and CMD, CCI for bringing quality norms especially for gin-out ratio, trash content, moisture content, weight loss, etc., apart from the regular quality parameters like staple length and micronaire value.
Nataraj has stated that the cotton waste price trend prevailed during the last few years indicate that the waste price steeply increased from the beginning of cotton season as the ginners procure waste cotton for adulteration. He has stated that such practices exponentially increase the short fibre content affecting value realisation, productivity and quality of the yarn.
SIMA Chief has proposed the following interventions by the Union Minister for Textiles to make the Indian cotton world-class in terms of quality and thereby help the cotton formers and the industry to achieve a sustained growth rate: