Local Release............

Press Information Bureau

Government of India

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NJMC WILL BE REVIVED: DAYANIDHI MARAN

Kolkata, October 7, 2009

 

The Union Government is actively contemplating the revival of National Jute Manufacturers Corporation (NJMC) through Private-Public partnership mode at an estimated cost of Rs.1,202 crore. This has been stated by Shri Dayanidhi Maran, Union Minister for Textiles while addressing an interactive session on the "Indian Jute Industry-Present and Future" with the industry representatives in Kolkata today. "I suggest that possibility may be explored to establish composite units for jute products in these modernized units", Shri Maran stated.

 

The Textile Minister rued the fact that jute as a fibre has not exploited its potential. Jute industry supports for nearly 40 lakh farmer families besides providing direct employment to 2.5 lakh industrial workers and livelihood to another 20 lakh people in secondary and tertiary sectors. The Minister informed that the Government has increased the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of jute by more than 50% during the last 5 years, which now stands at Rs.1, 375 per quintal. He said that the Jute Corporation of India has already been directed to make sure that it meets its objective of ensuring proper remunerative prices to farmers by conducting commercial operations at appropriate stage, to arrest the slide in prices of raw jute which harms the interest of farmers. The Textile Minister underlined the necessity of constitution of "National Green Council" to promote research and adoption of improved practices in jute fibre to ensure safeguard eco-viability of the crop and protect farmers.

 

Shri Maran iterated that there is an immediate need to accelerate research and development efforts to develop high yielding certified seeds to improve productivity and production of jute to empower the farmers to get higher yields and economic value for their produces. He also informed that four Mini-Mission (MM) have been launched to bring about development of jute sector from production to marketing in mission mode approach. Market Yards are being developed under Mini-Mission-III to reduce transaction cost of raw jute.  Two such Market Yards at Chapadanga (West Bengal) and Kharupetia (Assam) have already been completed and inaugurated and another two at Bethuadahari and Karimpur of Nadia districts are coming up. Besides, Departmental Purchase Centres (DPC) at Karnojor and Katwa in West Bengal and Kalibor in Assam will be completed in this fiscal year.

 

The demand of jute sacks by food grain procurement agencies were around 15 lakh bales per year about two years back and at present it stands at 24-25 lakh bales per year, the Minister informed. He also said that the Government has constituted a working group for formulation of National Fibre Policy with a sub group on jute sector.

 

Shri Dayanidhi Maran assured the industry that he has already taken up the matter of subsidy with the Ministry of Finance and has demanded that the subsidy be raised from Rs.70 lakh to Rs. 3.5 crore per mill.

 

 Shri Maran called upon the West Bengal Government to expedite the process of land transfers from promoters to SPVs so that the jute parks can be developed expeditiously. 7 jute parks have already been sanctioned under Mini-Mission IV with a budget of Rs. 60 crores.

 

The Minister pointed out that the combination of the trio of grower-industrial worker-manufacturer exporter requires harmonious production system. He felt that there is a necessity for creating 'Brand Equity Fund' for jute products' export promotion. "Our Government will work towards these policies in consultation with Department of Commerce, various banks and Insurance companies", he stressed. He said that the use of jute based geo textiles in areas like soil erosion control, separation, filtration and drainage and soil reinforcement has already been established through extensive field trials in different states. Aggressive marketing campaign requires to be launched for promoting their use in these areas, emphasized Shri Maran.

 

sc/dk/kol/14:40 hrs.