Chandigarh, November 3
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today rejected the minimum support price (MSP) of cotton announced by the Centre and demanded that it be re-fixed at Rs 4,420 per quintal to compensate increase in input cost.

In a statement here, Badal said the new cotton MSP for the year 2012-13 was “woefully inadequate and unjustified” and much below the expectation of the farmers. He termed it a cruel joke with "distressed" cotton growers.

The Centre had yesterday hiked the cotton MSP to Rs 3,600 a quintal for short staple, Rs 3,900 for long staple and Rs 3,800 per quintal for cotton produced in the state.

The Chief Minister saidn it was paradoxical that the cotton MSP announced by the Centre was much less than the price at which the country had been importing cotton.