Kulob-based cotton ginnery on verge of bankruptcy

KULOB, February 5, 2012, Asia-Plus  -- Severance of southern Tajikistan's rail connection to the outside world may lead to bankruptcy of the Kulob-based cotton-ginning factory, Mukhtor-S, the cotton ginnery top manager Mahmadi Homidov told reporters in Kulob on February 3.

According to him, the factory now cannot ship cotton fiber outside the country.  “Two freight cars loaded with high-quality cotton fiber have been stuck at the railway station Qurbon-Shahid for more than a month and we have been forced to give the cargo back to warehouses,” Homidov said, noting that all this has led to increase in the factory’s debts.

He considers that if the government fails to resolve the transit rail problem in the near future, the Mukhtor-S factory may become bankrupt.  “The remaining thirteen cotton-ginning factories operating in the region will experience the similar fate,” Homidov added.

We will recall that the mid-November explosion at a rail bridge in Uzbekistan severed southern Tajikistan's rail connection to the outside world.  After a few days of silence, state-controlled Uzbek media characterized the event as a “terrorist act.”  Subsequently, outside observers began casting doubt on Tashkent’s claim, with some asserting that Uzbekistan may have sabotaged its own railway in a twisted attempt to economically punish Tajikistan.

Since the incident, authorities in Tashkent have refused Dushanbe’s offers of assistance to repair the bridge.  They likewise haven't commented on when the bridge will become operational again.  Hundreds of freight wagons loaded with food and other essentials are reportedly waiting to pass over the damaged rail en route to Tajikistan.