SIMA wants Technology Mission on Cotton to be launched in

With Cotton Corporation of India launching the first Indian brand cotton 'HIRA', the Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) on Wednesday appealed to the Union Government to launch the technology Mission on Cotton in a revised format to increase productivity.

Cotton productivity in India is only around 460 to 500 kg per hectare as against 1,500 to 2,200 kg per hectare achieved by over 20 countries in the world, SIMA Chairman Ashwin Chandran said in a statement here.

According to him, the Textiles ministry is also planning to launch a scheme 'Nirmal Cotton Mission' with CCI as a nodal agency that would go a long way to make Indian cotton to become the best quality cotton in the world.

The SIMA chairman hailedthe launch of HIRA by CCI at a function in Mumbai on Wednesday and its plans to market it shortly.

He appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to launch the Technology Mission on Cotton in a revised format to increase productivity.

According to the statement, India became the largest producer of cotton during 2014-15 and continue to be the leader by accounting for 37 per cent area under cotton.

India produces 330 to 400 lakh bales and consumes 300 to 320 lakh bales of cotton per year thus becoming a net exporter of cotton.

"However, Indian cotton quality has been far below the standard especially in terms of trash content, contamination, that stalled value addition and also affected the revenue of cotton farmers," Ashwin noted.