Corrugated box manufacturers to shut industries for three days

Tribune News Service
Solan, December 5

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About 1,200 manufacturers of corrugated boxes across three states of Himachal, Haryana and Punjab will close their industrial units for three days from Monday in protest against the unprecedented hike in the price of kraft paper.

The manufacturers, who met in Panchkula last evening, said there had been 30-35 per cent hike in the price of kraft paper in the last four months and despite this the industrial units were unable to give them a corresponding hike in the conversion rates.

May extend closure, if need be

• About 1,200 manufacturers of corrugated boxes across Himachal, Haryana and Punjab said there had been 30-35% hike in the price of kraft paper in the last four months and despite this the industrial units were unable to give them corresponding hike in the conversion rates
• Surinder Jain, president, HP Corrugation Box Manufacturers Association, said the step had been taken as a last-ditch effort as running the industry had become a loss-making proposition under the current circumstances
• The investors resolved to extend the closure, if need be

Surinder Jain, president, HP Corrugation Box Manufacturers Association, said the step had been taken as a last-ditch effort as running the industry had become a loss-making proposition under the current circumstances.

“It is lamentable that though the price of kraft paper has increased by 30-35 per cent, the industrial units are not ready to increase the price of corrugation boxes. We are sandwiched between the paper mills and the investors and have no say,” Jain said.

He said there were about 1,200 units in these states that employed about 50,000 people. “On the one hand, the government is boycotting the sale Chinese goods, on the other, trade is being opened for China, which is ironical. The paper mills are selling material to China at a time when its domestic demand is not being met. There should be a ban on this import,” he said.

Hemraj Chawdhary, who heads the Baddi area, demanded to enhance the price of the corrugation boxes in the given circumstances. Ashok Rana, convener of the association, said time has come to unite for the just cause or else they would continue to be exploited.

Similar sentiments were echoed by Ankush Goel, who heads the Kala Amb unit. Corrugation box manufacturers from Haryana and Punjab also lent support to the box manufacturers of Himachal.

All manufacturers unanimously decided to support the three-day closure as they felt a permanent solution was the need of the hour.

Gagan Kapoor, former president of the state unit, said the issue should be taken up with the paper mills emphatically and if need be they should not desist from sitting on a protest as they were incurring losses under these conditions. The investors resolved to extend this closure further, if need be.