OSMA Urges Govt to Limit Comber Noil Exports to Meet Domestic Needs

The Open-end Spinning Mills Association (OSMA) has urged the Central Government to allow the export of comber noil, a byproduct of the yarn spinning process that is used in a variety of applications, only after domestic needs have been met.

As per Arul Mozhi, President of the Coimbatore-based Open-end Spinning Mills Association, the Indian government should ensure that the export of comber noil is permitted when it is available in excess after meeting the commodity's domestic demand.

While the production of open-end spinning mills has increased, the availability of comber noil, one of the primary raw materials on which mills rely, is becoming scarce due to its export to European markets. Coimbatore has 75 to 100 open-end spinning mills and more than 500 across Tamil Nadu.  

South India produces 25 lakh kg of grey yarn per day, and the comber noil required for this is approximately 15 lakh kg per day. However, it is no longer available due to diversion to exports.

These open-end mills' grey yarn is used to make bed sheets, pillow covers, lungies, floor spreads, and a variety of other low-cost items.

Cotton waste is exported at a cost of Rs 80 per kilo. The buyer from abroad turns it into finished goods and sells them to us for a high price. Imagine the revenue that could be generated in India if this material is first given to the domestic market, then made into a finished product here, and then exported to foreign countries, as per Arul Mozhi. 

The Open End Spinning Mills Association (OSMA) is the leading spinning mill manufacturer. We are engaged in cotton spinning work. The Open End Spinning Mills Association has over 400 members in Tamil Nadu alone, with our members accounting for 60% of India's total open end spinning rotor capacity.