Prithviraj Chavan urges PM to lift ban on cotton exports

Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan today urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to lift the ban on export of cotton saying that it will affect farmers in the state severely.

Maharashtra is one of the largest cotton growing states. Most of the cotton in the state is cultivated under rainfed conditions. It is grown in the backward region of Vidarbha and Marathwada, where a large number of suicides of farmers due to agrarian distress have been reported, Chavan wrote in a letter to the Prime Minister.

According to him, this year the season opened with much lower prices compared to last year. The farmers in Maharashtra have been demanding a higher Minimum Support Price (MSP) of nearly Rs6,000 per quintal.

The MSP declared for Maharashtra is Rs3,150. In the wake of farmers' protests and wide spread violent agitation, the state government has declared a special package of Rs2,000 crore to assist the cotton growing farmers. The new ban on exports will further bring the prices down. Even if Government agencies enter the market, it will only be at the MSP level, Chavan said.

It is reported that about 33% of cotton in the state is still with farmers. The ban will severely affect them, he added.

After the ban, most of the cotton markets in the state were closed and some incidents of violence were reported, he said.

There is a strong possibility of violent protests spreading across the state. The budget session of the state Assembly will start on March 15 and this issue will be raised vociferously, he said.