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Industrial
recession, farmers’ woes dare candidates in TN
S. Gururajan
Coimbatore,
April 22:
Myriad issues ranging from textile sector to foundry industry to
pollution threat are confronting the contestants in various Assembly
segments like Mettupalayam, Avinashi, Coimbatore and Tirupur.
The textile
industry has been suffering from demand recession, high cost of
finance, labour and cotton, steep hike in power, water and fuel
charges for the past few years. Out of the 1,739 mills in the country,
801 are located in Tamil Nadu, accounting for the production of
nearly 50 per cent of cotton yarn. The industry which provides employment
to thousands of workers is today in doldrums. Yarn movement is sluggish
and payment in respect of supplies already made could not be realised.
This has had
a cascading effect on the economy of the industry. The wages are
not disbursed on time and bonus is no longer paid in liberal terms.
No prompt remittance of statutory recoveries like provident fund,
insurance and payment to credit societies is made.
Industrial
sickness, which has hit the textile sector, has not spared the ancillary
units which are dependent on major spinning mills. The delay on
the part of spinning mills in placing orders for taking up technology
upgradation programmes has affected the fortunes of the textile
machinery manufacturing industry leading to either lay-off or curtailment
of production schedule. The liberal import of second-hand textile
machinery has also affected the domestic industry to a large extent.
The foundry
industry which plays a pivotal role in the industrial development
of this region is also in dire straits. It is a major supplier of
casting items to the engineering and automobile industries. Apart
from demand recession, the industry has got entangled in numerous
problems like conversion of the area where such units are located
into non-residential areas.
The problem
of pollution in Tirupur and Mettupalayam has been alarmingly increasing
due to the presence of a large number of dyeing and processing units.
Agriculture
has also not been spared. The farmers of Coimbatore region, which
is known for large tracts of coconut trees, are a worried lot today.
The coconuts yield has drastically come down following the eriophyide
attack on trees.
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