Yamunanagar (Haryana): All industries and factories in the country and the state are going through a rough phase due to the lockdown in view of the COVID-19 crisis, the effect of which is also manifesting in Haryana's Yamunanagar.
The district's plywood industry which was once vibrant with the rumbling noise of the saw machines, has now calmed down due to the lockdown.
Plywood industry faces loss in Crores
Yamunanagar is home to Asia's largest plywood industry, with about 650 small and big plywood factories. More than fifty thousand labourers work in these industries. The wooden goods manufactured in these industries are not only supplied throughout the country but are also exported on a large scale. The said industry generates revenue of around Rs 2000 crore for the government, but the factories are now inoperative due to the lockdown and the industries are suffering heavy losses.
Industrialists seek relief from the government
According to JK Bihani, head of the Plywood Association of Yamunanagar district, it is difficult to assess the damage caused by the lockdown to the plywood industry. But in order to cope-up with these heavy losses, he has demanded some relief from the state and central governments.
He pleaded to the state government that it should give some concession in electricity bills or take its payment from the security deposited for their machines. At the same time, he has also demanded the central government to hold the loan installment for six months and waive the interest of the same at least for the lockdown period.
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JK Bihani said that the after-effect of the lockdown shall be persistent till next March. Therefore, the government should give a subsidy of four percent on the bank rate and introduce reduction in the GST rates as well, so that the demand for the products increases and the employment in this industry can be maintained at the same level as it was prior to the lockdown.
Large number of workers affected due to industrial shutdown
Due to the stalled work of the plywood industry, farmers, transporters and labourers have also been affected badly. The reason being that the poplar trees grown by the farmers which are used for making plywood, are not making their way to the factories anymore. The transport system is also on halt through which the raw material reaches the factories. The trucks are standing idle, thus adversely affecting the huge working chain.
Raw material lying inside factories deteriorating
Due to the lockdown, a lot of raw material is lying inside the factories and it is deteriorating. That is why the owners of plywood factories are seeking permission from the government for operating their factories for a few more days with the help of the workers present inside the factories, so that their loss can be reduced to some extent.
Now, it remains to be seen to what extent the COVID-19 crisis has an impact on the industry, and whether the government stands by the industrialists and compensates them for the losses they face.
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