LS polls: Kanpur leather tanneries' lockout stares down at BJP in Phase 4

The indefinite shutdown of the Kanpur tannery industry, which provides direct and indirect employment to about a million people, is staring down at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the industrial town of Kanpur, ahead of polling in the fourth phase on Monday.

The nearly 150-year-old Kanpur tannery sector, part of the Rs 12,000 crore of the composite Kanpur leather belt, which also includes adjacent Unnao district, were served with the notice for closure between December 15, 2018 and March 15, 2019 for ensuring cleaner Ganga during the 2019 Kumbh Mela at downstream Prayagraj (Allahabad). 

However, even after the culmination of Kumbh last month, a majority of Kanpur tanneries remained shut as green watchdog Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) did not issue the requisite clearance certificate.

Kanpur, which was earlier referred to as the ‘Manchester of the East’ owing to a flourishing textiles industry, held on to its reputation of being one of the leading finished leather and leather goods hub to the present times. However, leather industrialists are foreseeing bleak prospects of industry going forward, owing to environmental concerns. 

“The tannery issue is directly related to the livelihood of people, especially poor and marginalised sections. There is obviously angst among the affected people over the issue,” Small Tanners’ Association member Nayyar Jamal told Business Standard.

Leather industrialists had even approached UP MSME minister Satyadev Pachauri, a BJP MP from Kanpur City. However, he reportedly referred to the tough environmental norms and clean Ganga mission of the government. 

In 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP veteran Murli Manohar Joshi had defeated Congress’ three time sitting Member of Parliament (MP) Sriprakash Jaiswal by more than 200,000 votes. Jaiswal is again tying his luck as a Congress candidate. 

He had defeated Pachauri in 2004 Lok Sabha elections by a narrow margin of about 5,000 votes.

There are more than 1.6 million electorates in Kanpur City constituency, which would witness voting along with 12 other constituencies in UP on April 29.