Cheap synthetic carpets imports may hit domestic industry

The dumping of cheap synthetic carpets from China and Middle-East has hit the Rs 4,000-crore domestic carpet industry, endangering the livelihood of over 1,50,000 weavers in India, a top industry official said.

"We have urged the Government to impose restrictions on imports of synthetic carpets to India to protect the in-house carpet industry," Birla TransAsia Carpets' President & CEO, Manish Malani, told PTI here.

The centuries-old Indian carpet industry, currently worth Rs 4,000-crore is already facing a severe crisis in the wake of the global economic slowdown, endangering the livelihood of over 150,000 weavers in Kashmir alone," Malani said.

Birla TransAsia Carpets Ltd, a part of the Yash Birla Group, is engaged in the manufacture of machine-made woolen carpets having a capacity of 1,50,000 square meters per annum.

The Indian carpet industry which was about Rs 800-cr in 1980 has touched Rs 4,000-crore this year. However, due to the global slowdown, the growth rate has come down to less then 10 per cent.

India offers the best variety in terms of carpets.

However, these carpets are expensive as they are made up of fine quality natural sources like wool, silk and cotton.

"Due to their unaffordability and slump in demand, a lot of synthetic carpets are being imported to India from China and the Middle East, Malani said.

The manufacturing of synthetic carpets are far cheaper due to low power costs and availability of silk in China.

Malani pointed out that though the Indian Government has implied strict restrictions on the imports of woolen carpets to India to protect the in-house carpet industry, there is, however, no provision for the restriction on import of synthetic carpets.

Hence, traders have taken an advantage of this flaw in the import policy and are flooding the market with cheap synthetic products making India a dumping ground for these products. The lifespan of these carpets is very short, some being 6-8 months, as compared to natural woollen carpets.

The woollen carpets can be buried easily as they are bio-degradable, whereas the synthetic carpets have to be burned which leads to global warming.

The synthetic carpets made up of polypropylene and polyester are burnt in bulk in an open area as there is no proper disposal system available in the country, he said.

This process emits toxic gases like carbon-dioxide and carbon mono-oxide, which not only adds to the global warming but also gives rise to dangerous diseases like cancer and bronchitis, he added.

Unfortunately, customers are unaware of these hazards while purchasing these carpets and get carried away by the price and attractive appearance. "Adequate awareness needs to be generated among the users in order to protect our health and mother earth," Malani said.