Gokaldas pegs damage at Rs 50 cr

Gokaldas Exports Ltd, the country’s biggest apparel exporter, has pegged the damage caused by fire at its raw material godown on Friday at around Rs 40- 50 crore, according to initial estimates.

A major fire, which broke out in the wee hours of Friday at the company’s godown here, could be doused only after four hours by the state fire control authorities.

“According to our initial estimates, the damage could be around Rs 40-50 crore. However, we are yet to arrive at a final number,” Gokaldas Exports Managing Director Rajendra Hinduja said.

Company officials would meet state authorities on Monday to provide the exact estimate of the damage, he added.

Referring to negotiations on delivery dates, Hinduja said: “We have already started negotiations with our clients for deferring the delivery dates by a few weeks and are arranging raw materials from suppliers.”

However, he said the incident would not have major impact on the revenue or production of the company.

Meanwhile, the state authorities have asked the state electricity department to ascertain the cause of the fire.

“Electric inspectors are examining the cause of the fire and are expected to submit their report soon,” B G Changappa, director, Karnataka State Fire and Emergency Services Department, told Business Standard.

State fire control authorities had deployed 29 firefighters and each had to make two-three trips to bring the fire under control, he added.

Gokaldas has an order book of Rs 500 crore for the first and second quarter of 2010-11. The company reported a flat top line of Rs 283 crore for the third quarter, ended December 31, 2009, and came back into black with Rs 5.34 crore.