Anjuman Kashtkaran Punjab, Kisan Ittehad and other farmers associations threatened to stage protest rallies, demos across the country if the raw cotton (Phutti) price was not fixed at Rs 5,000 per maund till November 10. Provincial Chief of Kisan Ittehad Punjab Khalid Mehmood Khokhar and President of Anjuman Kashtkaran Punjab Peerzada Abdul Ali Zakir Usmani rejected the cotton arrival report of Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association describing it false and exaggerated.
They claimed that only 5.5 million bales of cotton reached the ginneries but PCGA showed that arrival reached up to 7.6 million bales. He said the country received more than 1.12 million cotton bales till the fortnight that ended on November 1, which is 28.66 percent lesser as compared to 1.57 million cotton bales received during the same period of last year. Till November 1, the country produced around 5.70 million bales in about half year crop season while during the same period of last year the country produced more than 6.85 million bales.
He said the Cotton Crop Assessment Committee (CCAC) had set a target at 12.5 million bales for cotton 2013-14 season. He alleged that PCGA had cut the weight of cotton bales to increase its number, and said now bales of 130 kg instead of 180 kg are being packed to exaggerate the figures of production. He further alleged that ginners are openly and fearlessly fleecing the cotton growers.
President of Anjuman Kashtkaran Peerzada Abdul Ali Zakir Usmani and other Progressive farmers Chaudhry Qaiser Abbas Ghallu, Muhammad Afzal Khan Saggo, Zaigham Abbas Mahni, Mian Farhan Mitro, Sheikh Muhammad Sadiq, Mian Najib Haider Saddhal, Chaudhry Mehmood Gujjar, Nawab Abdullah alias Bappi, Nawab Saleem-ullah Khan Tareen complained that ginners are paying them Rs 2,600 to 2,800 per maund, while their cost of production has increased up to more than Rs 4,200 per maund. They endorsed the protest threat.