Withdraw the ban on cotton export immediately:Modi requests PM

In a letter written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today Chief Minister Narendra Modi demanded to lift the ban on cotton
export from the immediate effect to save the farmers of Gujarat from financial loss. He also demanded to immediately allot an export quota of 10-lakh bale of cotton to the State as a special case.

After returning back from Chennai late evening today Chief Minister wrote a letter to the Prime Minister in which he elaborately mentioned how the ban on cotton export will adversely affect the cotton producing farmers and rural economy of Gujarat which is largely depended on agriculture.

Chief Minister said that Gujarat is producing one third of cotton in the country and 50% of it is exported. Gujarat cotton is well-known in the international markets for its superior quality. Cotton was cultivated in 16-lakh hectare land in 2003 which has increased to 24.64-lakh hectare now. Gujarat farmers have produced 104.55-lakh bale cotton this year compare to the 74-lah bale in last year. And banning the cotton export in this scenario will financially ruin the farmers of Gujarat, Chief Minister wrote.

Chief Minster described the Centre’s strategy of banning cotton export as an anti-farmer policy and said that it is a game to demoralize the cotton producing farmers of Gujarat. In 2010, Union Finance Ministry even slapped an export duty of Rs.2500 per ton on cotton and also issued a notification regarding it on April 9, 2010, he added.

Chief Minister further wrote that cotton prices are moving upwards in the international markets whereas decreasing continuously in the local markets. Farmers do not have any mechanism for the storage of cotton and now are compelled to sell their crops on low prices. Prices of various varieties of cotton have decreased by up to 50% in the current season.

The ban has caused disappointment among the cotton producing farmers as they are suffering financial loss and so the Center should immediately allow the State an export quota of 10-lakh bale of cotton, Chief Minister demanded.