Ludhiana: Relieved though at the sight of easing lockdowns in the other states and hopeful that goods will start moving, the garment and textile producers have a new worry in the fluctuating rates of yarn, their biggest raw material.
They claim that the hike is artificial.The manufacturers look to the state and central governments for help in increasing production.
Sharing his concerns with the media, Bharatiya Vyapar Mandal senior vice-president Radhe Shyam Ahuja said: “In the last one year, the price of yarn increased by 64% or more.
The cost of each kilogram of acrylic yarn moved from Rs 170 in September 2020 to now Rs 280.
PC Yarn which, one of the commonest raw material, went from Rs 150 to Rs 240 in the same interval, while cotton yarn blew up from Rs 250 to Rs 300.”Ahuja, who also is president of the Ludhiana Yarn Dealers Association, said: “The huge increase and frequent fluctuation in the yarn rate hurts not only the garment and textile industry but also the yarn traders and general public.
A handful of people engineer this fluctuation.
We are trying to alert the central and state governments, along with expecting a solution.”Knitwear Club chairman Vinod Thapar said: “A pricier yarn is beyond our understanding, as the ground report suggests a huge drop in demand over the last few months due to a fall in production.
Instead of declining, the rates have shot up, that too by 50 to 60%, which makes it clear that this is a man-made situation.
The garment makers who lost sleep over how to dispose of the huge stock that piled up during the lockdowns now must also find a way to absorb the price shock.” Moti Nagar United Factory Association executive member Hemant Abbi said: “A costlier yarn has given us a big headache.
Many members shut their factories and got into trading because they couldn’t take more losses.
The rest of us also feel helpless, since the trend of unjustified increase in the yarn rates has not changed for a year and the government is unable to do anything about it.”