Jayajit Dash / Bhubaneswar Jul 21, 2010, 00:25 IST
IJMA had claimed mills can meet the demand for the year.
In a blow to the jute industry, the Union textiles ministry has said that claims about manufacturing capacity made by the Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA), the apex body of the jute industry, are unrealistic.
A note prepared by the Jute Commissioner’s Office (JCO) pointed out that almost 70-75 per cent jute mills operated below the norms of the Jute Manufacturers’ Development Council (JMDC). The note will be placed for approval at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) to be held soon.
Protesting the proposal made by the Standing Advisory Committee of the Centre for 25 per cent dilution, IJMA said there were no capacity constraints and the jute industry was equipped to meet the packaging requirement of government procurement agencies in 2010-11.
However, according to the JCO note, the sacking capacity shown by IJMA is not attainable because of machinery imbalance and bottlenecks. While IJMA said the jute industry had an installed capacity of 1.5 million tonnes jute bags, JCO said the actual capacity was 1.18 million tonnes per year.
Backing its stand for a 25 per cent dilution in favour of plastic bags in the current financial year, the Union textiles ministry has said that it is being done in the interest of the economy and is in conformity with the National Jute Policy 2005.
According to the Jute Packaging Materials Act (JPMA), it is mandatory for government procurement agencies to go for 100 per cent jute packaging for foodgrain and sugar. In 2009-10, the ministry had made a similar recommendation for dilution. However, it was reversed at a CCEA meeting in September 2009 on the intervention of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee.
This year also, an IJMA delegation is stated to have met Banerjee to press for reversing the dilution and continuing with 100 per cent reservation for foodgrain and sugar. The association has also sent representatives to meet the prime minister and the finance minister.
After reading this news,one may logically come to the conclusion that Plastic lobby in our country has overpowered the traditional jute industry(particularly of Bengal)by showing thumb to 100% mandatory use of jute packaging in foodgrains and other articles inasmuch as the plastic coterie seems to have managed the policy makers,particularly in the Ministry of Textiles.MPs from Bengal are either ignorant of this catastrophe or are silent for oblique and obvious reasons-Sukhendu Sekhar Ray,Advocate,Calcutta High Court
Posted by: nirmalya
July 22 , 2010, 17:07 IST
After 24 years of protection the jute industry should now come out from beneath the Govt. pettycoat.
the defaulting and subsidised jute industry indeed should be taught a lesson as they use the farmers and workers as shields to maximize their short term profits. The Govt. should calculate how much of the subsidy goes into the pockets of these mill lords and what percentage is received by the poor farmers and exploited workers, while these faceless local mill owners muster additional assets of over 135% in the past 3 years.
Posted by: s.s.ray
July 23 , 2010, 22:45 IST
Absolutely true,but successive govts have failed to streamline the jute industry and the mediavel exploitation of jute growers even at the hands of govt agencies.Need of the hour is to develop,promote,diversify jute than to sorrender to plastic lobby,moreso because plastic,if used particularly in food articles will bring serious health hazaeds and also envronmental catastrophe
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In a blow to the jute industry, the Union textiles ministry has said that claims about manufacturing capacity made by the Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA), the apex body of the jute industry, are unrealistic.
