Whos behind cotton mess?

Media campaigns by textile stakeholders point to a destruction of the productive capacity. Can anyone make sense of this mess?
Cotton prices have soared in the last few months. Demand revival from China, stagnating yields from Pakistan, and most recently, a ban on exports from India have pushed the price of cotton bales to Rs6700 up from about Rs3200 at the beginning of the year.
As a result, daily trading on the Karachi Cotton Exchange has dropped to as low as 1400 bales, which is less than one-fourth of the average volumes seen in the year ago seasons. Average volumes at this time of year have "traditionally hovered around 8,000 to 10,000 bales per day," according to Naseem Usman, Chairman of the Karachi Cotton Brokers Association.
The export oriented value added sector, faced with higher input prices has been urging the government to curtail the export allowance of yarn. They claim that massive job losses and the eventual shut down of many factories will result, if their demands are not met.
On the other side of the battle line, APTMA is making the most of high prices in international markets. They argue that free market mechanisms must prevail to ensure that all stakeholders in the industry benefit from price dynamics in the long run.
Leaders in the value added sector claim that the government must cater to the "larger interest of the country". They hail the Indian decision of banning cotton exports and urge the government to do the same. Arguably, the decision to protect its domestic market is being cited.
"Until about fifteen years ago, there was a constant struggle between value added sector and spinners, over ban on cotton exports" says Zahid Bashir, a cotton expert. At that time, a policy of tracking international prices was instituted. Imports of cotton were made zero rated and the textile industry had experienced substantial growth.
Since then, on average about 2.4 million to 4 million bales of cotton have been exported every year. That accounts for about 20 percent of the production, while the rest is available to producers locally. The dynamics have taken an unexpected turn this year - a turn which the value added sector failed to forecast and take decisions accordingly.
In the absence of a proper regulatory environment, where rules and policies don change thrice year on the whims of influential textile lobbyists, leaving it to global market dynamics seems to be the best option, with a no quota on import or exports. If any businessman misses the boat, the blame should not be shifted to the government or other stakeholders.
And if textile players still demand concessions, then somebody must tell them that one shouldn expect representation without taxation. The whole of countrys textile sector pays only Rs4.6 billion in taxes, whereas its contribution in the economy amounts to Rs1200 -1500 billion, according to former finance minister Shaukat Tarin.
On a side note, the eventual beneficiary of higher cotton prices should be the farmer who toils in the heat to produce it. It may in the larger interest of the "people" of this country to let the benefits of increased prices trickle to the people.