Lok Sabha Question No. 913 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-04-28
Subject: Crisis in Jute Industry
Ministry: TEXTILES
Asked by: SAUGATA ROY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 913 TO BE ANSWERED ON 28.04.2016

## CRISIS IN JUTE INDUSTRY

## 913.   PROF. SAUGATA  ROY:

Will the Minister of TEXTILES वस्त्र मंरी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is aware of the occurrence of serious crisis in the Jute Industry;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and the steps taken by  the Government so far to address the crisis; and
- (c) the steps being taken by the Government to help those workers who lost their jobs and livelihood due to the closure of a number of jute mills in the country?

## उत्तर

## ANSWER

## वस्त्र राज् य मंरी (स्त्वतंर प्रभार) (श्री संतोष क ु मार गंगवार) MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE)

## IN THE MINISTRY OF TEXTILES

(SHRI SANTOSH KUMAR GANGWAR)

(a) to (b): As  per  the  estimate  of  the  Jute  Advisory  Board  (JAB),  the estimated crop size for 2015-16 jute year was 80 lakh bales. However, the production  of  raw  jute  has  been  affected  due  to  decline  in  the  area  of cultivation  and  by  the  early  onset  of  rains  and  later  due  to  the  floods, which affected  jute growing areas in South Bengal and Assam.

The following steps have been taken by the Government to resolve the raw jute crisis, through its Office of Jute Commissioner, Kolkata:

- (i) It  has been made mandatory for all raw jute traders to register their units.
- (ii) All jute mills have been directed to submit raw jute stock position.
- (iii) Orders have been issued under clause 5(A)(1) (iii) of the Jute and Jute Textiles  Control  (Amendment)  Order,  2005;  directing  all  traders  or dealers or agencies that not to stock more than 1,700 quintals of raw jute  on  own  account  and/  or  on  account  of  third  parties.  This  was later reduced to 900 quintals w.e.f. 8 th  March, 2016.
- (iv) Jute mills have also been directed not to hold more than four weeks' consumption requirement of raw jute.
- (v) The officials of Enforcement Branch of Govt. of West Bengal have been empowered under Section 7 of the Jute & Jute Textiles Control Order, 2000 to inspect, search and seize raw jute beyond the specified limit.
- (vi) Ceiling  limits  on  the  raw  jute  price  for  the  current  year  has  been imposed till June, 2016.

The Government of Bangladesh has been persuaded to lift the ban on export of raw jute, to enable imports by Indian Industry and diminish shortage of availability of raw jute.

Further,  the  Government,  through  the  Department  of  Agriculture, Cooperation  &  Farmers  Welfare,  is  also  implementing  jute  development programme under the National Food Security Mission- Commercial Crops (NFSM-CC) for enhancing the production and productivity w.e.f. 2014-15 in 9 States including West Bengal.

(c) There  is  no  report  of  loss  of  jobs  of  workers  in  the  jute  sector. However, in order to support the jute industry, the Government has been taking regular steps to protect the jute workers and jute farmers.  The steps taken include - (i) under the Jute Packaging Materials (Compulsory Use in Packing Commodities) Act, 1987 it is mandated that 90% of the total food grain production and 20% of the sugar production should be packed in jute bags so that sufficient orders are available for the jute industry; (ii) All State Governments have been requested to promote the usage of jute geo-textiles for slope stabilization, formation settlement and reservoir management; (iii) jute  diversification  is  being  promoted  and  a  scheme  for  setting  up  of Common Facility Centres (CFCs) to support Women Self Help Groups for the manufacture  of  jute  diversified products  has  been  launched    on  1 st September 2015; and (iv) the modernization of jute mills is supported by the National Jute Board under the Incentive Scheme for Acquisition of Plant and Machinery (ISAPM).

****