Atlas Cycles’ closure: ₹120-crore pending in payments, cycle part suppliers in Ludhiana in a fix

A day after the fourth and last unit of Atlas Cycles in Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, shut down its operations, scores of suppliers of cycle parts in Ludhiana are staring at massive losses, leaving their employees in a quandary about their future.

As per estimates, Atlas Cycles owes over Rs 120 crore to around 80 vendors in Ludhiana, a number of whom had been its suppliers for several decades. Atlas Cycles (Haryana) Ltd had shut down its operations on Wednesday, celebrated as World Bicycle Day, citing deep monetary crisis.

The company, however, has assured to clear all payments soon. “The company has a dispute pending before the National Company Law Tribunal, which will hear the case on June 18. Following the hearing, they plan to sell off a part of their land in Sonepat to clear the debt,” said DS Chawla, president, UCPMA, adding that the senior functionaries of the firm had termed the closure a temporary phase to save day-to-day expenses.

Charanjit Singh Vishwakarma, former president, United Cycle Parts Manufacturers’ Association (UCPMA), said Atlas Cycles played an instrumental role in developing the cycle industry and taking it to the world. “It was them who taught the trade to others in Punjab. The government should help them emerge out of the crisis as such revered brands should not fade into oblivion,” he said, adding that closure of the firm’s units will render over 6,000 labourers in Ludhiana unemployed.

While Atlas owes Vishwakarma’s firm Rs 20 lakh, payments worth another Rs 65 lakh are pending towards Satnam Enterprises in Focal Point that has supplied bicycle parts to Atlas for two decades. Owner of this firm, Gurkanwal Singh, said Atlas’ closure was bound to have a lasting impact on suppliers in Ludhiana.