Further, unfettered cotton trade is also essential, for fully exploiting cotton's potential. It is therefore, important that cotton is removed from Essential Commodities Act. Revaluation of cotton monopoly procurement scheme while also involving state marketing federations to undertake cotton marketing.

Reduction of cotton production cost is vital for retaining competitiveness of cotton vis-a-vis other crops and man-made fibres that threaten to dislodge cotton from its pre-eminent position.

Raising the share of irrigated cotton from current level of around 30 per cent to over 50 per cent is necessary to improve the overall average yield of cotton.

Currently the averageyield is around 330 kg per hectare from under 250 in 1995-96. However, the world average yield of cotton per hectare is 579 kg per hectare, while some of the leading cotton growing countries like China, USA, Uzbekistan, and Australia have a very high averages of 792 to 1,585 kg per hectare.

These are some of the suggestions of East India Cotton Association (EICA) for improving the cotton productivity in the country brought out in `Cotton -Miles to Go', a 70-page publication which outlines a fair picture of the existing and future conditions in the cotton economy.

Published by EICA, it expects the corporates to come forward for the same. The government's proposed Rs 60-crore Cotton Technology Development Fund is said to been shelved for various obvious reasons, the paucity of funds with the government and financial institutions being the main. Even as global cotton prices are sluggish, thanks to declining offtake and increased supplies from almost all cotton producing centres, Indian cotton industry seemsto be hopeful of reviving cotton's age-old eminence in and outside the country. This is more so when the Forward Markets Commission (FMC) has recently permitted trading in cotton futures on the East India Cotton Association (EICA) exchange at Sewree, central Mumbai.

After being banned in August 1966, cotton futures will be traded once again on EICA sometime during this month. Food Minister SS Barnala is likely to inaugurate the formal trading in Indian Cotton Contract, EICA's cotton futures contract.

EICA president Suresh Kotak feels: "There are no two opinions about the enormous potential that India has in cotton but its realisation would depend largely on how fast and how effectively we act to strengthen the weak links in the long chain of production, marketing and processing."

The corporates can engage a large number of individual farmers (with small holdings) in a common programme aimed at improving both yield and total input. The corporates can encourage groups of cultivators in taking to modernfarming on a profit-sharing basis. The success of this approach has already been demonstrated by some corporate bodies in case of few oilseed crops.

This will introduce modern management in cotton farming activities and promote a focused approach to solve problems of low productivity, varietal deterioration.

The issue of development and improvement in cotton is likely to face serious challenges in the coming years. While fierce competition for the available market is the main factor,cheaper manmade fibres are threatening to replace cotton. Even when the existing quota system may be totally dismantled, several countries may be expected to erect non-tariff barriers of several kinds and in several disguises to thwart India's attempts to vie for a larger share of the markets.

It is at this juncture, that the EICA feels there is good potential for cotton despite the all-India acreage for cotton declining to 88.68 lakh hectares in 1997-98 from 91.66 lakh hectares--the highest ever--in 1996-97.

There are fewnagging questions that require lasting solutions and not just satisfying answers. Among others some of the questions that disturb the industry are: Why should India with the second largest textile industry in the world have a mere 2.5 per cent share in world textile trade? Why should the country that pioneered the hybrid technology in cotton have one of the lowest average yields? And why should the country with the largest cotton area be relegated to the third position in production?

What ails Indian cotton?

For one, the country is not fully exploiting the exciting combinations of favourable factors it has for cotton. The efforts too do not appear to measure up to the requirement and are not properly harmonised towards a common goal. At least three main problems bog cotton growing and handling activities in the country: One, small holding of farmers; two, predominance of rainfed areas; three, low level of technology adoption and lose handling of cotton during transport, stacking, processing andballing all leading to high level of contamination.

Further, there is shortage of space in cotton handling despite 500 regulated marketyards handling cotton, besides handling of other commodities. The chaotic conditions in several market yards, particular during the peak marketing season, are one of the many factors that add to contamination. Lack of adequate farm credit is one of the major constraint faced by farmers that has a direct bearing on the adoption of improved technology. Cotton makes relatively greater demand on capital because of its higher nutritional requirement and for providing efficient plant protection cover.

Probable solutions for cotton development

Raising cotton productivity, upgrading its quality and reduction of cost of production of unit weight are the three main factors that need to be addressed at the earliest by all concerned with the cotton economy.

Among others, following is the list of suggestions to achieve this common goal: