Latest News | Jute Industry Welcomes Centre's Decision on Mandatory Packaging of Foodgrains

Kolkata, Oct 29 (PTI) The jute industry on Thursday welcomed the Centre's decision on mandatory packaging of 100 per cent foodgrains and 20 per cent sugar in bags made of the yellow fibre, saying that it is the best 'Diwali' gift to the sector.

It will ensure demand for jute packaging material for 55 odd mills in West Bengal and support lakhs of workers and farmers dependent on the sector, industry sources said.

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"We welcome the decision taken by the Union Cabinet today amid the COVID-19 crisis. It will help jute farmers and workers. It is the best Diwali gift for the sector," Indian Jute Mills Association's former chairman Sanjay Kajaria said.

Another miller said there was a threat of dilution in the mandatory jute packaging norms but the Centre's decision will help mills stay operational particularly after some closed units in West Bengal have recently reopened.

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"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved that 100 per cent of the foodgrains and 20 per cent of the sugar shall be mandatorily packed in diversified jute bags," an official release said.

The decision on the extension of norms for mandatory packaging in jute materials will benefit farmers and workers in West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Meghalaya and Tripura.

It also mandates that initially 10 per cent of the indents of jute bags for packaging of foodgrains would be placed through a reverse auction on the Gem portal, the release said.

"This will gradually usher in a regime of price discovery," it added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)