ISLAMABAD: The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has asked the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to stop using video monitoring at spinning mills and instead install it at the ginning stage, where raw cotton is first processed. The move aims to better track undocumented cotton and prevent losses in the supply chain.
In a letter to FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial, APTMA Chairman Kamran Arshad said the problem of “golmaal” (undeclared cotton) starts at the ginning stage, not at spinning mills. He highlighted a major gap between Punjab’s cotton production estimates and the amount of cotton actually delivered to ginneries. For example, while Punjab is estimated to produce 3.81 million bales, only 2.45 million bales reached ginneries—showing a difference of 1.35 million bales.
Kamran Arshad said this shows that leakages occur at the ginning stage, and monitoring spinning mills would not solve the problem. He recommended implementing video monitoring and a national cotton traceability system at the ginning stage to ensure transparency and compliance.
APTMA urged the FBR to withdraw the current system and replace it with a new procedure focused on the ginning stage, so that undocumented cotton can be effectively controlled from the very start of the supply chain.
