The nation-wide strike called on July 5 has resulted in huge monetary loss for firms engaged in manufacturing across the nation  The nation-wide strike called by 13 leading opposition parties including the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and the Left on Monday, has severely hurt manufacturing activities across the nation, stated apex industry bodies such as the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM). While the total estimated loss is expected to range between Rs 3,000 crore and Rs 13,000 crore, the bandh largely affected small and mid-sized firms engaged in manufacturing particularly in states of West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Himanchal Pradesh etc.Revenue loss
According to Naveen Srivastava, proprietor of Illumination India, a mid-sized manufacturer of LED lights in Mumbai, “Because of the strike on July 5, most workers were absent, which halted our production. For mid-sized firms like us, a halt in production work even for a day means huge monetary loss.”
Industry people opine that such strikes do not augur well when the economy is on the road to recovery and will only add to inflation. It is to be noted that the HSBC Markit Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI), one of the premier indicators of manufacturing activities in the country, dropped to 57.3 in June as compared to 59.0 in May.
In this context, Rakesh Jha, director of Deco World, a mid-sized manufacturer of auto ancillaries in Kolkata, said, “The manufacturing sector is a major contributor to the country’s GDP. At a time when India is gradually emerging as a global manufacturing hub, a nation-wide strike can have serious repercussions in the long run.” Mr Jha also added that his firm’s delivery schedule was severely impeded.
The strike was called to protest against the hike in prices of petrol, diesel etc. However, analysts have raised doubts whether such strikes can actually bring down prices of the aforementioned products.
Arup Choudhury |
