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CTA wants increased cotton production after Indian ban

KARACHI: The Council of Textile Association, on Friday urged the spinners to produce contamination-free cotton yarn and increase their production on war-footing to counter Indian ban on import of raw cotton from Pakistan.

The CTA reacting to the Indian decision without going into the reasons for the steps taken by Pak government, maintained that the challenge should be accepted by consuming all the cotton grown in the country by converting it into value added items.

The council urged Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz to call an emergency meeting to take immediate steps, ensuring that the growers adopt quality cotton picking methods and receive reasonable price of puhutti.

The value added textile industry should make all-out efforts to export textile goods not only to quota countries but also other international markets, the council suggested.

It claimed that about 90 percent of raw cotton is exported in one form or the other. Even the waste is sold out abroad, leaving no room for the imposition of sales tax on cotton and cotton products.

The Finance Minister should order the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) to settle all outstanding issues of sales tax within 10 days. The ST on silver fiber be withdrawn from February 1, 2000, the Council demanded. The loss of revenue due to withdrawal of ST from cotton will be compensated by export proceeds, it added.

The council called upon the cotton industry, not to be depressed rather take the Indian refusal as a blessing in disguise. "We want that the entire business community involved in textiles should meet the challenge and ensure that not a single pound of cotton is exported," it said. APP