Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) has demanded of the government to impose a ban on the shifting of sugar mills to Southern Punjab which had been declared as cotton belt and take effective measures for the protection of white Gold (cotton) economy and to promote the export of textile products.
Talking to media men, PCGA vice-chairman Rao Sadaruddin, Chairman of Ginners group Haji Muhammad Akram and a spokesman Shehzad Ali Khan said that Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif, Federal Commerce Minister Engr Khurram Dastgir, and Minister of Textile Industry Abbas Khan Afridi should impose ban on the shifting of sugar mills to South Punjab as the government had decided not to allow new sugar mills in the core cotton areas nor permit existing mills to expand their capacity as it would curtail cotton production.
They said the shifting of sugar mills in the core cotton areas would be destructive for the cotton growers, ginners as well as textile sector. They said that shifting of sugar mills in Alipur and Jatoi sub-division of Muzaffargarh district would change the cropping pattern and expansion in existing sugar mills came at the cost of the silver fibre - a vital foreign exchange earner for the country. They said that the emerging situation would tempt more growers towards sugarcane, especially in Muzaffargarh, Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalpur districts. They reiterated their demand that the government should take notice of prevailing situation which may be harmful to textile sector. They said that Indian government had concentrated its attention towards the cotton production to strengthen its economy and it was giving incentives to cotton growers, ginners, and textile sector, but our government had shut its eyes and it was reluctant to give any incentive to the stakeholders of cotton economy.
They warned that Pakistan would have to import raw-cotton and cotton yarn to run its textile mills if it allowed the shifting of sugar mills in core cotton areas. They said the prime minister should take notice of this situation. They said the general policy had always been to restrict sugar mills in cotton areas, but there had been many violations. Not only new mills were allowed to "influential" people but they were also allowed to increase capacity of existing mills and shifting of sick units. "The responsibility rests with the district governments after the devolution plan, and they allowed new mills," they remarked.