This is unlikely to be achieved looking to the fact that in the first nine months of 1999, shipments have reached only about 59 per cent of the quota instead of nearly 75 per cent last year. It might be interesting to note, according to analysts, that when the CAB met last in August 1999, it had restricted its import estimate to 8 lakh bales, ignoring the fact that import contracting have reportedly totalled nearly 11 lakh bales by that time. Though this would have been known to most members of the CAB at that time as it was the talk of the town, CAB came out with an incredibly low cotton import estimate of 8 lakh bales. It is difficult to say why independent members of the CAB should have endorsed a questionable estimate in regard to cotton imports during 1998-99. Take the case of cotton exports.
Analysts find the same tendency to dish out incredible estimates.
When the first meeting of the CAB for the 1998-99 season was held, export estimate was placed at five lakh bales. Subsequently this was lowered to two lakh bales in February 1999 and then to one lakh bales in August 1999. If one goes by the CSN estimates, exports against the quota could reach only 80,000 bales during the season apart from 10,000 bales against the spillover quota from the previous season. Our ridiculous export performance compared with that by some other countries according to analysts, can be attributed on theone hand to the fact that our prices were mostly out of parity with those prevailing in the overseas markets, and on the other hand the union textile ministry had followed the out-dated policy of distributing the overall export quota of five lakh bales among various agencies most of whom had neither any experience of export business nor the necessary contacts in export markets. Nov 15 Infrastructure for agro exports, is one of the prime reasons for declining rice exports, especially during the peak export season October to March, said director, Tanna Agro Impex, Dipak Tanna.