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Textile Vision hinges on
contamination-free cotton
MULTAN-Federal Minister for Commerce, Abdur Razzak Dawood
Thursday said, Pakistan would not be able to proceed ahead
with its revolutionary textile vision plan without making
positive achievements on production of contamination-free
cotton.
He was speaking at a seminar at Rahimyar Khan on 'production
of contamination-free cotton'. Federal Minister for
Agriculture Khair Muhammad Junejo besides ginners, growers,
officials, experts and a number of people from other
walks of life attended the seminar.
Commerce Minister disclosed that the Pakistani garments and
bed sheets would have duty-free access to the international
markets from Jan 1, 2002, and urged the millers to make
strenuous efforts to reap maximum benefit from this
opportunity. "Production of contamination-free cotton
was a prerequisite condition to achieve desired results
regarding steep enhancement in foreign exchange earnings
through value addition", Razzak Dawood said.
Expressing satisfaction on the results, achieved so far, on
the campaign for production of contamination-free cotton, he
said, "I am very much satisfied that the ginners and growers
have fulfilled their promise by putting all their energies for
the purpose.
However, Razzak Dawood added, this effort by the growers,
ginners and textile millers should continue unaffected to make
the international market believe that Pakistan, like other
countries, is also capable of producing contamination-free
cotton.
The project has been decided to be launched in phases and the
same continued at Rahimyar Khan and Ghotki districts and has
so far yielded positive results, Razzak Dawood said. He said,
the project would be expanded to whole of the cotton producing
areas in the country hoping that the same will, Inshallah,
meet success.
Commerce minister made it clear that Trading Corporation of
Pakistan would stay in the market and purchase lint whenever
textile millers would show any hesitation in doing so.TCP has
achieved its major objective as growers did not get price of
phutti below the support price, Rs 780 per maund, he said.
Though the price of phutti has now reached to Rs 950 per maund
but TCP still would stay in the market, he added.
He said, the ginners would also receive premium in addition to
the actual price of lint on better-grade cotton. Razzak Dawood
said that situation with regard to wheat, sugar cane and rice
is satisfactory in the country adding that government has plan
to export one million ton of wheat this year.
About sugar, he hoped that Pakistan would not be in need of
importing this commodity this year adding that its price would
also remain stable. Federal Minister for Agriculture Khair
Muhammad Junejo, while addressing the seminar, said that the
project for production of contamination-free cotton has left
good impact on the stake- holders of cotton economy by
preparing them to meet the challenges of the new age.
" We have a good cotton crop this year and its prices also
remain stable due to effective liaison between the ministry of
trade and commerce and the ministry of agriculture" ,he said.
On complaints of spurious pesticides, he said, government has
introduced strict laws to check the same and all efforts would
be made to implement these laws in letter and spirit.
He said, government is committed to provide relief to the
growers adding: " GST was levied on Urea from Jan 1 this year
but to save the growers from its impact, the president General
Pervez Musharraf advised the factories to pay this tax from
their
profits without burdening the growers." Likewise, following
levy of GST on pesticide, the
government reduced duty from 20 to 5 per cent on import of raw
material for preparation of pesticides", he said.
Chairman Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association, Shaikh Muhammad
Saeed, District Nazim Rahim Yar Khan, Makhdoom Syed Ahmed
Mehmood, Chairman All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA),
Nadeem Maqbool, besides representatives of growers of ginners
also addressed the seminar.
November 21, 2001
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