Ginners in Pakistan have decided to halt the purchase of raw cotton from farmers nationwide in response to directives from district commissioners in the cotton belt regions of Sindh and Punjab.
The commissioners mandated that ginners pay farmers no less than Rs8,500 per maund (around 37.32 kg) of cotton, which is the minimum support price set by the federal government. Failure to comply would result in the closure of ginning mills.
The decision to suspend raw cotton purchases was made by the central executive committee of the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) during a meeting in Multan.
The PCGA outlined several demands, including the withdrawal of sales tax on banola (rapeseed) and the removal of pressure on ginners to buy cotton at a specified price.
They argued that it was the government’s responsibility, not the private sector’s, to ensure the payment of the Rs8,500 cotton intervention price. The ginners also highlighted the burden of high electricity costs and interest rates on loans faced by millers.
Chaudhry Waheed, the chairperson of the PCGA, invited growers to join their struggle against the government. He stated that numerous ginning factories had already closed due to high tax rates and insufficient facilities.
Former PCGA chairman Dr. Jassomal Lemani proposed that the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) should purchase cotton and rapeseed from ginners at rates that would enable them to pay the desired Rs8,500 per maund to the farmers.
Representatives of the Sindh Abadgar Ittehad held a press conference in Hyderabad, asserting that ginners in Sindh were not adhering to the official price of Rs8,500. They claimed that their counterparts in Punjab were paying farmers Rs9,500 per