The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association Punjab Acting Chairman Syed Ali Ahsan has urged the Ministry of Commerce to allow import of cotton from India by enhancing the limit of 0.5 million bales through land route at the Wagha border. He said the failure of cotton crop, particularly in Punjab to the extent of 44 percent, has caused serious shortage of cotton affecting adversely not only to the cotton farmers but also the whole supply chain of textile industry.
"In order to meet consumption requirements, the industry has imported cotton from all sources, including India," he added. He said the Punjab-based textile industry has preferred to import through land route at the Wagha border under the Import Policy Order 2008, which restricts import of cotton to 0.5 million bales. "A shortage in cotton production during the current fiscal has forced the textile millers to import cotton additional to the limit of 0.5 million bales," he added. He said some 22,000 cotton bales are yet stranded at the Wagha border since last one month and further in the pipeline after having import permit and opening up of Letters of Credit.