Jute harvesting hit by water crisis

The harvesting of jute crop in the current season is likely to come to a standstill due to lack of proper retting facility in jute growing areas of West Bengal, Bihar and Assam.

The acute water shortage in these jute growing states has affected the retting process thereby spoiling the quality of crop.

Retting is a process employing the action of micro-organisms and moisture on plants to dissolve or rot away much of the cellular tissues surrounding bast-fibre bundles, and so facilitating separation of the fibre from the stem.

Without a proper harvest, the jute industry has to remain content with the bad quality of fibre and this in turn would adversely affect the quality of jute goods in the national and international markets.

The jute industry fears that things are likely to spiral out of control if prompt steps are not taken by the government in making arrangements for water pumps, shallow and deep tube wells as well as filling up of canals and water hooves.

Raw jute has already started arriving in small quantities from July 15 and without proper harvest, there is likely to be a shortage of the new crop in the market. Consequently, there would be a problem in meeting the requirement of B Twill jute bags for government procuring agencies, the requirement being pegged at 1.42 million bales for the kharif season.

The shortfall of the new crop will further push raw jute prices to a higher level, forcing the mills to refrain from purchasing the new crop thereby creating an industry-wide crisis. It may be noted that prices of raw jute were ruling at Rs 30,000 a tonne (as on July 20).

Lower crop will also give rise to illegal hoarding and the worst affected would be the jute cultivators as they would be deprived of remunerative prices.

Concerned over the situation, Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA), the representative body of jute mills across the country has written to Rita Menon, secretary, Union ministry of textiles, on July 21.

IJMA has sought the intervention of the textiles ministry in urging the Jute Corporation of India (JCI) and the Jute Manufactures’ Development Council (JMDC) to come to the rescue of the industry.

IJMA has pointed out that JCI and JMDC need to play lead role in immediately arranging for water and adequate retting facility in the jute growing areas in collaboration with the state governments and the Directorate of Jute Development under the Union ministry of agriculture.