New Delhi has alleged that cotton exported by Pakistan has been infected by a virus. Zafar Altaf, Secretary for Food and Agriculture in Pakistan, said India being a WTO member cannot clamp on such a ban arbitrarily and would have to back it up with technical evidence. He cited the example of the mad cow disease in which the WTO exonerated Britain, from which other countries were refusing to import beef. India was the single largest buyer of Pakistani cotton for the current season, signing contracts to buy about 250,000 bales. However, only 40,000 have been shipped so far.
Exporters are now worried about what to do with the remaining cotton set aside for Indian buyers.
Despite the fact that the Indians were getting a benefit of over Rs. A Sri Lankan delegation headed by Finance Secretary P.B. Jayasundara will leave for New Delhi to continue the discussions in the second week of February.