LAHORE: Cotton imports from India have been delayed as official permit in this regard is only effective for the first three months of 2018, it was learnt on Wednesday.

No volume of cotton could be imported from India by land or sea routes as permits issued by the Department of Plant Protection, Ministry of Food Security were valid only for the period of January 1, 2018 to March 31, 2018.

In the wake of less-than-expected domestic production of cotton, the federal government allowed import of cotton from India in the last week of November.

“However, due to procedural delays and issuance of permits that are valid from January 1, cotton import is yet to take off,” said Ihsanul Haq, chairman, Pakistan Cotton Ginners Forum (PCGF).

The chances of a significant amount of cotton import from India were diminishing with each passing day, he said, and added the cotton output in India was also less than expected, which is why prices were already picking up.

“There are some reports of cancelling of cotton contracts between the traders of both sides.” The Pakistan Cotton Ginners Forum chairman said it was a surprise for the importers that federal government’s permits were not valid with the date of issuance. “An upward trend in cotton prices was being witnessed following depreciation of rupee value against the dollar,” he said, and added this scenario was not favourable for the importers and textile industry as they could face shortage of the commodity in the coming days.