Lockdown in Delhi, industry takes a blow in Bahadurgarh

Ravinder Saini

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Tribune News Service

Jhajjar, April 19

The six-day lockdown enforced in Delhi in view of the rapid increase in Covid cases will force industrialists in Bahadurgarh town to shut their units as 40 per cent of labourers and around 60 per cent of senior officials come from the national capital.

Lockdown will add to woes

The industrial sector has already been hit hard by the farmers’ agitation. Since the Tikri border has been closed for more than four months, the cost of transportation and other services has increased. The lockdown in Delhi will add to the woes. — Sushil Agarwal, General Secy, Bahadurgarh Industries’ Association

One-third labour left

About 40 per cent of labourers come from the bordering areas of Delhi, while many have started returning to their native places. This leaves less than one-third of labour here. In this scenario, it is difficult to run the production chain at full capacity. — Narendra Chhikara, Senior Vice-President, Bahadurgarh Chamber of commerce and Industries

Bahadurgarh, which is located on the Delhi-Haryana border, has more than 5,000 industries, where around 2.5 lakh labourers work.

Even if industrialists think of lodging all labourers in Bahadurgarh so that the production continues, it would not be feasible considering the enormous number of labourers. Those living in Bahadurgarh have started returning to their native places, fearing lockdown in Haryana.

“The industrial sector has already been hit hard by the farmers’ agitation. Since the Tikri border has been closed for more than four months, the cost of transportation and other services has increased. The lockdown in Delhi will add to the woes,” said Sushil Agarwal, general secretary, Bahadurgarh Industries’ Association.

Narendra Chhikara, senior vice-president, Bahadurgarh Chamber of Commerce and Industries, said: “About 40 per cent of labourers come from the bordering areas of Delhi, while many have started returning to their native places. This leaves less than one-third of labour here. In this scenario, it is difficult to run the production chain at full capacity.”

The most hit will be the footwear industry. Bahadurgarh is the footwear hub of India with 800 small, medium and large-scale units. Shoes, sandals and slippers from Bahadurgarh are exported to Somalia, South Africa, the UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia and several other Asian countries.

Raj Kumar Gupta, president, Footwear Park Association, Bahadurgarh, said the imposition of lockdown in Delhi would turned the situation from bad to worse.

“Industrialists are already facing shortage of raw materials. Now, there will be shortage of manpower. Industrialists are in a tight spot. They have no option, but to shut their units until the situation improves,” he added.