Mumbai, Nov 3 (UNI) Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) President Nana Patole on Sunday demanded that prime minister Narendra Modi should immediately ban the import of cotton and purchase cotton with a guaranteed price from farmers.
In his letter penned to Prime Minister Modi, he mentioned that Maharashtra is the second largest state in the country in terms of cotton production, with more than 40 lakh farmers producing cotton. While the state is producing a lot of cotton, the news of 2.2 million bales of cotton being imported has led to fears of a major drop in the price of cotton in the country. Cotton Corporation of India also has 11 lakh bales of unsold cotton lying around. Taking into account the interests of farmers, the Central Government should immediately ban the import of cotton and direct the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to purchase cotton at a guaranteed price.
He further mentioned that currently the price of cotton is Rs 6500 to Rs 6600 per quintal, which is less than the guaranteed price of Rs 7122. Farmers have not sold cotton as there is no price for cotton in the market. Farmers have cotton, and CCI also has cotton bales. Importing cotton when there is such a large amount of cotton in the country will cause the cotton market to collapse and the farmers will be hit hard, and this decision will only benefit the traders.
Cotton farmers in Maharashtra are already in trouble; low prices, 12 to 18 percent GST on agricultural implements, and unseasonal rains have left cotton farmers in a vicious cycle. Even the compensation announced by the central government is still on paper. Pradhan Mantri Peak Bima Yojana is only for the benefit of insurance companies.
Patole said that the central government should ban the import of cotton, keeping in mind the interests of the farmers, he added.
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