Panipat blanket industry hit by inflation, stares at crisis

Tribune News Service

Mukesh Tandon

Panipat, June 1

Increase in raw material cost and decrease in demand, both due to inflation pressure, have hit Panipat’s blanket industry hard.

This year, a massive drop in demand for mink and polar blanket has been witnessed. As a result, the plants are not functioning at full capacity. Around 20% plants were shut while other 80% plants are running only in single shifts,” Pritam Singh Sachdeva, president, Panipat Industrialists Association, says.

The industrialists claim that by May every year, production used to start in all the 150 plants and that too in three shifts. Sachdeva says the decrease in demand has been caused by several factors but inflation is most worrying.

“The demand of mink blankets as gifts have decreased as the cost of blanket might rise 20 to 30 per cent from Rs 1,000 to 1,200 last year. Over production in previous years is also a major cause of decreased production,” he adds.

Bheem Rana, President, Panipat Dyers’ Association and mink blanket manufacturer said mink is manufactured using polyester yarn, that will costs around Rs 125 per kg this year. Last year, the yarn used to cost Rs 100 to 105.

Meanwhile, Ram Pratap Gupta, Secretary, Polar Blanket Manufacturers’ Association maintains rising price of polyester yarn and overproduction has shrunk the demand of mink and polar blankets this year. Polar blankets are used in covering bed sheets, blankets, quilts etc.

But the entire situation will only clear in some months, Rana said.

The city’s blanket and 3D bed sheet industry have emerged as major players, meeting the country’s demand of these product. The success of the industry was so overwhelming that imports from China were completely shut.

Out of the 150 small and big plants in the city, 80 are of mink blanket, 40 plants of polar and 40 are of 3D bed sheets here.

Sachdeva said approximately 8 lakh Kg mink blanket is produced daily which means around 3.20 lakh blankets per day. The cost of production is around 180 per kg in the market earlier but it may rise this year, he adds.

Besides, approximately 1.25 lakh kg polar blankets and around 20 lakh meters 3D bed sheets are also manufactured per day, he says.

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