The Centre has been asked to facilitate cost-effective transportation of cotton and textile goods among five major cotton and textile goods manufacturing states to sustain their global competitiveness. These states are: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Greater efficiency at ports can translate into better logistics.

Mills in Tamil Nadu are seeking certain concessions and relaxations in the budget for Indian shippers so as to bring down the cost of cotton transport on par with foreign shippers. They have also appealed for duty-free bunkers for Indian flag vessels for carrying cotton and textile products on Indian coasts.

Due to the steep increase in lorry freight, transportation of cotton by road has become unviable. The current lorry freight for transporting cotton from Gujarat to Tamil Nadu is Rs 865 per bale. Currently, mills are spending Rs 85,000 to bring 100 bales by lorry from Gujarat to Tamil Nadu which works out to around Rs 5.30 per kg whereas China is able to transport 150 bales of cotton from Gujarat to Shanghai at $100 to 350 using empty cargo vessels returning in the same route.

Mills in Tamil Nadu account for 44 per cent of the total spinning capacity of the country and 60 per cent of its yarn exports.