Cotton occupies an important place in the international textile trade. Cotton is at the forefront these days both in India and abroad. Availability and the quality of cotton are determining factors which will influence the economic viability of the textile industry.

Textiles related Associations in India and Cotton Producers’ Associations in the US and elsewhere are pleading for support from their respective Governments. A fair and balanced policy approach has to be formulated which will be win-win for the producers and end-user community. 

Texas Tech University, USA and Bannari Amman Institute of Technology (BIT), India will jointly organize the 6th edition of the international conference on, “Advances in Textiles, Machinery, Nonwovens & Technical Textiles-ATNT 2009,” from December 7-9, 2009 at BIT Campus, Sathyamangalam, India.

Realizing the importance of cotton, the International Conference “ATNT-09” will feature a special session on cotton. This will have seven key papers by pre-eminent personalities in the cotton field. Papers will include developments in cotton seed industry, situation of US and Texas cotton yield & quality, quality evaluation and developments in cotton spinning.

According to Dr. Seshadri Ramkumar, Organising Secretary of International Conference ATNT-2009, “the special session on cotton will highlight topics that are timely and are of immediate need for the cotton textile industry. The session will bring all stakeholders involved in the cotton industry right from seed producer, R&D sector and textile industry support groups such as The Southern India Mills’ Association and The South India Cotton Association.”

Special effort has been made to bring the representative of Plains Cotton Growers of Texas, USA. Texas is the largest cotton producer in the US. During this current season, Texas is expected to produce 4.9 million bales (480 pounds each) of cotton. Of the total US production over 70% will be exported.

Dr. Seshadri Ramkumar further said, “one of the goals of the ATNT conference is to help the Indian textile industry to know more about the US crop and eye on it for producing high quality yarns and fabrics.”

Key papers in the Special Cotton Session are:

1. Cotton Seed Industry – The Life Line of King of Natural Fibres, Dr M Ramasami - Managing Director, Rasi Seeds (P) Ltd, Attur, India.
2. Texas Cotton Quality Past, Present, Future, Mr. Roger Haldenby, Plains Cotton Growers Inc, Lubbock, Texas, USA.
3. India’s Cotton Textile Policy, Dr K Selvaraju, Secretary General, The Southern India Mills’ Association, Coimbatore, India.
4. Cotton Quality Measurements, Dr. R. P Nachane, Principal Scientist and Head, Quality Evaluation & Improvement Division Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology, Mumbai, India.
5. Modern Developments in Textile Spinning, Lakshmi Machine Works, Limited (LMW), Coimbatore, India.
6. Right Cotton for Right Application, Mr. A Ramani, Joint Secretary, The South India Cotton Association, Coimbatore, India.
7. Current Status and Future Prospects for Diversified Utilisation of Cotton, Dr. S. Sreenivasan, Director, Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology, (Indian Council of Agricultural Research), Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, Mumbai, India.

The ATNT-2009 conference will provide a platform for cotton and textile industry people to openly deliberate the current cotton situation and seize opportunities towards growth.

The special session is planned on December 9th from 2-4.30 PM. The event will take place in the premises of Bannari Amman institute of Technology, Sathyamangalam, India.

Overall, the ATNT-09 conference has received an overwhelming response with scientists and industry leaders participating from USA, UK, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Czech Republic and India. 145 papers will be discussed in the three-day international event. 300 delegates are expected to participate in the international gathering.