Examine the present position and problems of the jute industry in India.

Ans. 

Introduction:

The jute industry is an ancient and important industry of India. This industry is especially important in terms of earning foreign exchange through exports. After the cotton textile industry, the jute industry occupies the second place among the major industries of the country, but it is more organized than the cotton textile industry. Till 1950, only 4 managing agents controlled and operated 32 jute mills in India. As a result, this industry has fully capitalized on large scale production. Most of the jute mills are located around Kolkata in West Bengal. The main reason for concentration of jute mills in Bengal itself is the availability of raw jute and capital here. The port of Kolkata also facilitates the export of goods produced by this industry. 

After the partition of the country in 1947, there were 106 jute mills in India. The jute industry was severely damaged due to the partition. 75 percent of the jute producing area went to Pakistan (now Bangladesh), but most of the mills remained in India. This led to shortage of raw material for the jute industry. Therefore, efforts are continuously being made to increase jute production within the country. Along with meeting domestic needs, the jute industry has special significance as an export industry. Currently, there are a total of 73 jute mills in India, of which 6 mills are in the public sector. About Rs 400 crore capital is invested in this industry and it provides direct employment to 2.5 lakh people. In addition, about 40 lakh jute producing farmer families depend on this industry. In 1990-91, production of jute manufactured goods was slightly more than 14 lakh tonnes. In the same year, about 2.6 lakh tonnes of jute goods were exported. In 2006-07, production of 12.50 lakh tonnes of jute goods took place. 

Problems:

Despite being an ancient and extremely important industry, the jute industry in India faces many problems. The main ones are:

(i) Shortage of raw jute - 

This is a major problem of this industry. There has been a shortage of raw jute in India since the partition of the country in 1947. The supply of raw material for the country's jute mills is inadequate and irregular. To overcome this, emphasis has been laid on increasing jute production in the Five Year Plans. Jute production in the country after partition was only 16.5 lakh bales which was increased to about 100 lakh bales by 1997-98. But in our country, the yield per acre of jute is very low. As a result, jute producers do not get profitable prices and they lack motivation to increase production. Therefore, it is necessary to fix minimum prices for jute producers and provide incentives to increase production. Along with this, there is a need to improve the quality of raw jute.

(ii) Export problem -  

The second problem of the jute industry is related to exports. Export trade has been the mainstay of this industry. But in the last few years, there has been a decline in the export of jute goods. For example, while the export of jute manufactured goods was 6.71 lakh tonnes in 1971-72, it fell to 2.6 lakh tonnes in 1990-91. There are several reasons for the decline in exports of this industry. The most important of these is the growing foreign competition. India had a monopoly in the production and export of jute until before the partition. But now it has to face foreign competition. Other producing countries of the world are using the latest machines and equipment to manufacture jute goods cheaper. Due to the higher price of Indian jute, demand for it has fallen in foreign countries. At the same time, many countries have also started manufacturing jute substitutes. To solve this problem, it is necessary to reduce the prices of Indian jute goods.

(iii) Modernization of machinery and equipment - 

A major problem of this industry is modernization and upgradation. The machines and equipments of most jute mills have become old and obsolete. There is an urgent need to modernize the machinery and equipment to increase their production efficiency. But this will require adequate capital. The government is keen on modernization of the jute industry and special facilities are being provided to jute mills for importing machinery etc. The government is also arranging for loans required for this work. A statutory body 'Jute Manufactures Development Council' under the Ministry of Textiles has been set up to provide financial, marketing and technical assistance to the jute industry. 

(iv) Speculation problem -

Another problem of the jute industry is excessive speculation. Due to speculation, the prices of jute and jute products keep fluctuating constantly which causes considerable damage to this industry. It also adversely affects jute goods exports. Therefore, it is necessary to curb the tendency of speculation in the jute industry.

Thus, the jute industry faces many problems. The difficulties of this industry have increased further after the partition of the country and it is extremely necessary to solve its various problems.