Sastha M Raja, Managing Director of Sastha Technical Textiles, Coimbatore, has demanded for swift measures to ccurb hoarding of cotton and price rise since the industry is yet to fully recover from the economic crisis it had been facing owing to the pandemic.
Coimbatore: The Managing Director of Sastha Technical Textiles, Sastha M Raja has demanded for cotton price hike to be curbed in Coimbatore.
"Strict action should be taken against those who stash cotton in India. After agriculture, textiles are the most employable sector in the country. Tamil Nadu accounts for one-third of the Indian textile industry structure, with 60 lakh people employed in Tamil Nadu alone. This significant sector and its chains have been severely affected by the rise in cotton prices. The price of a candy of 356-kg cotton has recently gone up to a historic Rs.95,000. The textile industry recently met the Union Ministers in person and apprised them of the issue as there was a danger that the steep hike would cripple the entire textile industry.
They said the problem would be resolved if the 11 percent duty on cotton imports is removed. Following this, the Government has also issued a notification to completely waive the duty on cotton imports till September 30. The move brought great joy to the textile industry in the country. The industry, which had been expecting cotton prices to start falling was in for a shock. The price of cotton as of today is Rs. 90,000 and the reason behind the rise as stated by the industry is quite frightening," explained Sastha M Raja, Managing Director of Sastha Technical Textiles.
He further added, "The Government's move to waive import duty on cotton keeping in mind the industry is welcome, however, both the local and international traders are the two main reasons for the constant rise in cotton price. On the other hand, there are many politicians, film actors, famous sportspersons, and others in India who are engaged in the cotton business. All of them have stashed a huge quantity of cotton locally. This is the main reason why the cotton prices have not come down as expected, despite the government removing the import duty."
Sastha M Raja demanded that the Central Government should immediately identify those who are hoarding cotton in India and take strict action against them immediately. "Besides, exports of cotton should be completely banned till September 30. If this is done, all the cotton that is currently hoarded in India will come to the market.
This will also bring down the price of cotton considerably. In today's scenario, the industry is not interested in importing large quantities of cotton from abroad because of the high price of cotton in the international market as well. There too, traders who act as middlemen dominate. Hence, I request the Central Government to take appropriate action on this issue in the coming days. Otherwise, the entire textile industry will have to face a severe impact," warned Sastha M Raja.
"Strict action should be taken against those who stash cotton in India. After agriculture, textiles are the most employable sector in the country. Tamil Nadu accounts for one-third of the Indian textile industry structure, with 60 lakh people employed in Tamil Nadu alone. This significant sector and its chains have been severely affected by the rise in cotton prices. The price of a candy of 356-kg cotton has recently gone up to a historic Rs.95,000. The textile industry recently met the Union Ministers in person and apprised them of the issue as there was a danger that the steep hike would cripple the entire textile industry.
They said the problem would be resolved if the 11 percent duty on cotton imports is removed. Following this, the Government has also issued a notification to completely waive the duty on cotton imports till September 30. The move brought great joy to the textile industry in the country. The industry, which had been expecting cotton prices to start falling was in for a shock. The price of cotton as of today is Rs. 90,000 and the reason behind the rise as stated by the industry is quite frightening," explained Sastha M Raja, Managing Director of Sastha Technical Textiles.
He further added, "The Government's move to waive import duty on cotton keeping in mind the industry is welcome, however, both the local and international traders are the two main reasons for the constant rise in cotton price. On the other hand, there are many politicians, film actors, famous sportspersons, and others in India who are engaged in the cotton business. All of them have stashed a huge quantity of cotton locally. This is the main reason why the cotton prices have not come down as expected, despite the government removing the import duty."
Sastha M Raja demanded that the Central Government should immediately identify those who are hoarding cotton in India and take strict action against them immediately. "Besides, exports of cotton should be completely banned till September 30. If this is done, all the cotton that is currently hoarded in India will come to the market.
This will also bring down the price of cotton considerably. In today's scenario, the industry is not interested in importing large quantities of cotton from abroad because of the high price of cotton in the international market as well. There too, traders who act as middlemen dominate. Hence, I request the Central Government to take appropriate action on this issue in the coming days. Otherwise, the entire textile industry will have to face a severe impact," warned Sastha M Raja.