Shabby conditions at CCRI: Cotton scientists facing serious challenges

MULTAN: Over 1100 employees including known cotton scientists at Central Cotton Research Institute (CCRI) are facing immense economic trouble due to the non-provision of salaries for the last eight months and situation can cause brain drain.

Central Cotton Research Institute is one of the leading research institutions in the country which contributed scores of best cotton varieties.

CCRI’s role is significant in advancing and generating knowledge in cotton since its establishment. It gave high-yielding varieties with standard fibre quality characteristics like staple length, fineness and strength. The institute played an important role in enhancing productivity from 370 kg/hectare (1970) to 772 kg/hectare (current).

The total budget of the institution is about Rs 800 million per annum.

According to sources in CCRI, under an act, it is the responsibility of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association to pay Rs 50 against one cotton bale. However, for the last many years, the APTMA is not allegedly paying the promised amount and it resulted in financial issues in CCRI, said sources.

About the reason why APTMA is not paying dues, the sources stated that APTMA wanted administration control of the institution. Due to this crisis, the prime institution of cotton research underwent financial crises.

Sources in APTMA informed that they were not satisfied with performance of CCRI and they wished to improve working of CCRI. Sources added that APTMA was ready to pay Rs 300/bale in case it gets administrative control of the institute.

Currently, the employees are under immense stress and young scientists are not ready to keep intact with CCRI. There is a threat of brain drain as the scientists are considering leaving the institution and searching for promising careers abroad. Sources in CCRI hinted that APTMA had to pay over Rs three billion to the research body.

It also added that only 20% mills were paying regularly to the institution. The institution maintains the operational expenses by that amount. The employees are staging protest demonstrations on daily basis but their demands have remained unattended so far.