'Fluctuating fuel prices slow poison for industries'

COIMBATORE/TIRUPUR: Industrialists in Coimbatore said that the rising fuel prices are jacking up raw material prices at a time when they are already battered by the lockdowns.

President of Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA), M V Ramesh Babu, said: "With a large portion of raw materials arriving from such cities as Delhi and Mumbai, transportation cost has gone up with the rise in fuel prices. And we have no option but to increase prices of the finished goods to tide over the crisis." Rise in lubricants cost is another worry for them, he said terming the daily fluctuating fuel prices a 'slow poison'.

Seconding Ramesh, District President of Tamil Nadu Association of Cottage and Micro Enterprises (TACT), J James, said that they are now paying up to `8,000 to suppliers for transporting a tonne of raw materials from Mumbai to Coimbatore as against `4,000 a year ago.

“Similarly, cost of transportation from Kolkata increased from `5,000 to `12,000, subsequent to the hike in fuel prices”, James said, adding that the whole industrial sector has been hit hard due to the back-to-back hikes in raw material and fuel prices. "To manage the situation, many units reduced orders by 60-50 per cent," he added. He opined that inclusion of fuel in the GST would ease the situation.

President of Coimbatore Tirupur District Micro and Cottage Entrepreneurs Association (COTMA), C Sivakumar, had this to say: "We are forced to shell out a lot due to fuel price hikes. The 50 per cent hike in transportation costs compared to last year is due to the rise in fuel prices, and it’s taking a toll on industrial units," he said.

The President of South India Hosiery Association (SIHMA), AC Eswaran said: "Since April 2020, the industry has been hit with multiple issues like rise in raw material cost and component-supply constraints. Besides, there is a domestic shortage of yarn products and cotton. Logistics accounts for around three per cent of price of goods. To reduce the burden, we will be forced to increase prices of final products."