Uncertainty looms over cotton market

Newindpress.com,Nov 19,2007

BHAWANIPATNA: Cotton farmers in Kalahandi district are a worried lot. Although cotton plucking has already started, the farmers have been forced to stock the crop at home in the absence of a marketing facilities.

Like last year, this year too five bio-cotton trading companies had made an agreement with the farmers to procure cotton from 14,788 hectares of land out of the total 17,798 hectares from the village point.

However, though the companies had applied for the requisite license through the Regulated Marketing Committee (RMC), the State Agriculture Marketing Board is yet to issue them.

Considering the gravity of the situation, the district-level cotton procurement committee has now made alternative arrangements.

At a meeting held here on Saturday, presided over by the Collector and attended by Agriculture Department and RMC officials, it was decided to start cotton procurement only through the ‘mandies’ at Karlapada, Utkela, Biswanathpur and Uchhala. If necessary, six additional mandies at Hatikhoj, Panimunda, Artal, Borbhata, Tuting and Chahaka could be used.

Since the Kalahandi cotton is of good quality, it was decided to fix the minimum bidding price at Rs. 2,170 per quintal in the cotton auction. It was also decided to collect Rs. 2.5 lakh from the traders to get the RMC license to participate in the auction.

Within four days of finalisation of auction in the mandi, the traders have to complete the weighing of cotton and within five days, have to deposit the auction amount with the RMC.

The RMC, on its part, will give account payee cheques to the farmers in a fortnight. It is decided to start the cotton mandi from November 27.

However, the farmer representatives who attended the meeting insisted on village-level procurement as they were apprehensive of harassment if procurement is done only at mandies.

Even the bio-cotton traders were in favour of village-level procurement as they were apprehensive that in the mandies, the bio-cotton that they are introducing may get contaminated with other non-bio varieties.