E-Paper
After a month of lockdown, MSMEs struggle to resume operations in Himachal
The industrial sector has been adversely impacted by the corona crisis.
It has been more than a month since the lockdown was enforced to contain the spread of coronavirus, industries particularly Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), as well as small scale units, are struggling to resume operations as Himachal Pradesh stares at an acute shortage of workers
The industrial sector has been adversely impacted by the corona crisis. Industries in the state are battling with an acute shortage of labour after the government has been repeatedly asking them to start operations. The industrial sector in Baddi, Barotiwaala and Nalagarh in Solan district and Kalamb in Sirmaur district is the worst hit.
The state government has made it mandatory that industries that have in-house arrangements for lodging of workers in order to resume functioning. Industries in Baddi, Barotiwaala and Nalagarh are mostly dependent on the migrant labourers who have returned to their native villages in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Bengal. Villagers on borders of Haryana and Punjab constitute a major workforce in Baddi and Barotiwala, while the industries in Parwanoo are dependent on the workforce from Pinjore and Kalka.
The state government has sealed its border with Punjab and Haryana and those with valid permission from deputy commissioners of the respective district are allowed to travel.
Colonel Shailesh Pathak, chairman of the Confederation of Indian Industries Himachal Chapter said that the HP government should allow labourers from adjoining states to travel to the state.
“Big industries don’t have many problems while the smaller ones are facing the music. Big companies have in-house facilities for labourers and their workforce. Many industrial areas in the Nalagarh subdivision which also comprises Baddi and Barotiwala have been classified as red zones after six persons were found positive for Covid-19,” he said.
Industrial sector performance is critical and plays a major decisive role in determining the overall growth of state output and employment through backward and forward linkages with other sectors of economy It contributes about 30% of the total gross value. There are nearly 54,310 industrial units in the state with an approximately ₹49,974 crore investment which provides employment to 4.52 lakh people. Of the total industries in Himachal, 140 are large and 628 are medium-small units.
