SISPA Urges CCI to Prioritize Cotton Sales To MSME Mills
The South India Spinners Association (SISPA) has called for immediate action from the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to prioritize cotton sales to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) spinning mills beginning July 1. SISPA has urged that the current cotton sales policy from CCI be extended for the next three months.
“The textile sector in India is facing severe financial challenges. Many spinning mills have shut down due to liquidity crises, high operational costs, and market volatility. These issues are exacerbated by a significant drop in yarn and textile exports and increased import pressures,” said S. Jagadesh Chandran, Secretary of SISPA. He also noted that selling cotton to traders leads to speculative practices, resulting in inflated prices and market instability.
“Despite the hurdles, there are hopeful signs of recovery within the spinning sector. A recent increase in garment export orders has allowed many mills to restart operations, driving up the demand for cotton. We request that the CCI not divert cotton stocks of 24 lakh bales, which is equivalent to one month of mill consumption. In the last three days, 2.5 lakh bales were sold to mills, and if this trend continues, all stock will be sold within a month. Therefore, we ask to stop sales to traders and reserve these stocks exclusively for mills,” he added.
“Four months ago, cotton prices surged from Rs 58,000 to Rs 63,000 per candy. At that time, we requested the Ministry of Textiles and CCI to halt cotton sales to traders. Following our request, the Union Ministry of Textiles advised CCI to stop these sales. Consequently, cotton prices dropped to Rs 57,000 per candy and have remained stable for the past four months. The stability in the open market prices was due to CCI’s prices acting as a benchmark. If CCI resumes sales to traders, prices will rise again,” he concluded.
