KARACHI, Nov 11: The inter-ministerial Cotton Procurement Committee has asked the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to increase the purchase limit from 3,000 bales to 6,000 bales from each ginning factory to further gear up procurement drive.

The decision was taken at the meeting of the committee, held here on Thursday. Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan, Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Livestock Sikandar Hayat Bosan, chairman TCP Syed Masood Alam Rizvi and representatives of ginners, Aptma attended the meeting.

The committee has been constituted by the prime minister to review cotton market and ensure that growers should get a price of Rs925 per maund for phutti.

The meeting also instructed the TCP to expedite payments to ginners so that they could clear their dues to growers against the purchase of cotton seed (phutti).

The TCP chief pointed out that the corporation was not holding any due payment of ginners. "As soon as we get delivery of cotton bales we make 90 per cent of payment and hold only 10 per cent for want of grade, staple length or other specifications," he added.

Trading Corporation of Pakistan has paid Rs1.4 billion to ginners as a 90 per cent amount against the delivery of 150,000 bales of cotton.

He said in next couple of days, 50,000 more bales would be received and the corporation would clear the payment for 200,000 bales before Eid.

Mr Rizvi said the TCP would pay the remaining amount after Eid. He said that the corporation had so far procured 657,500 bales, of which 427,900 bales were contracted from Punjab, while 223,600 from Sindh and 6000 bales from Balochistan.

He said there was no restriction on the TCP about the quantity of procurement. "We can buy as much cotton to stabilize the prices in the country."

Speaking on the occasion, the Commerce Minister said that the TCP had never undertaken such a massive trading activity in the cotton in the past and said this has stabilized prices in the market.

He said the government was committed to continue this intervention in the market to ensure payment of better prices to cotton growers.

He said there was no limit on TCP during the current cotton procurement campaign.-APP