Rajasthan bricks make it tough for Punjab kilns, capture 25% market share

The state brick manufacturing industry is facing a severe competition from the Rajasthan brick industry, which has captured about 25 per cent market share in Punjab. Keen competition has forced Punjab-based brick-kiln operators to fix the price of their bricks as per the rates being charged by their counterparts in Rajasthan.

Ludhiana-based Punjab Brick Kiln Association president Ramesh Mahe says: Supplies of their bricks have reached the interiors of Punjab, upsetting indigenous industry. Owing to this, the number of brick kilns have declined from a high of 2,700 about five years ago to presently about 1,500 now.

The sharp decline started after the state government made it mandatory for the brick-kilns to shift to the costly induced, high draft zig-zag technology, leaving them economically destabilised. Over five years ago, each kiln required an investment of nearly Rs 50 lakh, in which 10 lakh bricks were used to bring down the suspended particulate matter (SPM).

However, the transformation of the technology was not smooth as the number of workers increased from 12 to 16, and their salary also increased. At a kiln, staff was divided into three categories, depending upon their monthly wages of Rs 11,000, Rs 12,000 and Rs 15,000. Their monthly emoluments were hiked to Rs 15,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000.

This technology also improved the quality of production and decreased the usage of fuel. Earlier, a lot of bricks being produced consisted of 70 per cent superior quality and 30 per cent inferior. Now, the quantum of superior bricks has increased to 80 per cent. Similarly, the consumption of coal has also decreased by 10 per cent.

Muktsar-based brick-kiln operator Lakhbir Singh insisted on uniformity of rules for the brick-kiln industry across India to offer equal opportunity of business. He rued that costly induced high draft zig-zag technology was forcibly introduced in Punjab, while the Rajasthan government had once again extended its deadline to implement it to June 30, 2026.

“In order to comply with the norms of the technology, we have to use coal as a fuel, which costs between Rs 15 to Rs 18 per kg. On the other hand, Rajasthan-based kiln operators use agriculture waste fuel, reducing their annual fuel cost, which runs into over Rs 1 crore.

With no such restrictions applicable in the neighbouring state, they took advantage of the situation while over 1,200 kilns here were closed.

Amritsar-based brick-kiln owner Mukesh Nanda blamed arrival of overloaded vehicles, under value billing, use of low cost agricultural waste as fuel, low labour rates in Rajasthan and denying of equal footing to the Punjab-based industry. He added that in the entire Majha region, including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Amritsar, a lot of 1,000 bricks in retail costs between Rs 6,700 to Rs 6,900, while Rajasthan-based kilns are providing the same at Rs 6,500 and even less.

He claimed that labourers here charged Rs 980 for moulding of 1,000 bricks, Rs 250 for carriage, whereas in Rajasthan wages of the same work were paid between Rs 600 and Rs 150, respectively. In addition, each brick-kiln here engages about six employees on monthly wages, which varies between Rs 16,000 to Rs 20,000 per month. In Rajasthan the employees are paid about Rs 12,000.