Union minister Smriti Irani has decided to send the textiles secretary to the Telangana state to take a call on the demand put forward by a group of MPs from Telangana, led by the state’s irrigation minister T Harish Rao, to instruct the Cotton Corporation of India to open more purchase centres in the state as bumper harvest is expected this year.

Hairsh Rao said that the central government has sanctioned only 83 purchase centres but the state wants the number to be raised to 143. The centres should also be kept open for at least six consecutive days,

Harish also met union environment secretary AN Jha and requested him to expedite the environmental clearance for the Kaleswaram project. He also requested union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh to release Rs 132 crore pending funds to the state for construction of additional godowns.

The Telangana farmers have raised the cotton crop in over 50 percent of the sown are in khariff season as the result, around 30 lakh metric tonnes of cotton is expected this year, media reports in the state quoted Harish Rao saying.