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Cotton development programmes -- TMC to ink MoU to develop Srivilliputhur market yard

G. Gurumurthy

COIMBATORE, July 10

THE Technology mission on cotton (TMC), will formally sign a memorandum of understanding on July 12 with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Primary Marketing Committee authorities for upgrading the Srivilliputhur marketing yard to serve the cotton farmers bett er.

The MOU is to be signed before the top officials of TMC, the nodal agency for the National Cotton Development Programme and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Primary Marketing Committees authorities at a cotton meet to be held in Boothapadi cotton marketing ya rd in Salem district on that day, according to official sources here.

Incidentally, Boothapadi cotton yard is also expected to figure among the prominent cotton centres in the State which are to be developed under the cotton marketing infrastructure development programme contemplated under TMC's mini-mission-III.

On the July 12 meeting, which is being sponsored by TMC, the Tamil Nadu Government authorities are likely to make a strong plea for funding the Boothapadi marketing yard improvement as part of TMC's mini-mission programme.

The Union Textile Ministry and TMC have also chosen to convene a cotton farmers' awareness meet on `contamination-free cotton' at Boothapadi on the occasion and the meeting is the first-of-its kind to be held in the State. Besides the top brass from the Ministry of Textiles including the Textile Commissioner, Mr B.C. Khatua, and TMC's advisor and former Chairman of the Cotton Corporation of India, Mr M.B. Lal, representatives of cotton farmers, ginners, trade and cotton textile industry are expected to attend the meet.

Already two of the State's major cotton marketing yards - Tirupur and Villipuram - have been cleared under the TMC's cotton marketing infrastructure development scheme and the work on yard development is going on there. TMC has outlayed Rs 593 crore for cotton development programmes to be initiated under the four mini-missions during the remaining three years of the 9th plan period. As for the mini-mission-III which is related to cotton marketing infrastructure improvement, the Union Government's fund a llocation for the 1999-2002 period would be around Rs 42.75 crore while the respective State Government's share will work out Rs 26.50 crore.

As per TMC's road map for cotton market yard development programme, over the next two years, 30 cotton marketing yards across the country be upgraded, 15 other cotton market yards be activated and six more new cotton marketing yards be set up. The cotton market yard improvement assumes importance as the cotton farmers conversing at the marketing yard value more on the inputs obtained at the selling point right from the aspect relating to purity of seeds to contamination-free fibre. This contributes a lo t for the overall output of cotton crop.