Power price hike adds crores to burden:‘Yarn prices rise as soon as crude gets dearer, so why don’t they fall when crude prices drop?’

Ahead of Diwali, the textile industry is facing a growing crisis due to alleged artificial inflation of raw material prices, frequent power cuts and challenges arising from the new labour laws. To discuss the impact of these issues across the textile value chain, the chamber held a meeting with representatives of various textile-weaving associations at its Sarsana office. Industry representatives demanded an end to what they described as the unilateral pricing policy of spinners. They questioned why yarn prices are increased immediately when crude oil prices rise, but are not reduced with the same speed when crude prices fall. Chamber president Ashok Jirawala said practical issues faced by all associations would be compiled and jointly presented to the Central and state governments to help the MSME sector remain competitive in international markets. Higher electricity costs add crores to industry burden Since July, DGVCL has increased the FPPPA rate in electricity bills by 15 paise per unit and imposed a 3.99% variable charge, adding a monthly burden of crores of rupees on the industry. Frequent unannounced power cuts have further disrupted production. When electricity supply suddenly stops, high-speed waterjet and airjet looms, as well as automatic looms, come to a standstill. The sudden stoppage can cause yarn breakage, resulting in defective fabric and financial losses. Textile units seek changes in wage recovery rules Industry representatives also raised concerns over compliance with labour laws, particularly regarding migrant workers who prefer to receive their wages in cash. They also demanded provisions allowing textile units to recover up to 50% of losses caused by workers through damage to machinery or production, saying such a provision would help protect businesses from avoidable losses.