Thousands of powerloom owners and lakhs of workers in the state of Tamil Nadu are currently on strike. Tiruppur and Coimbatore are most affected as around 1.75 lakh powerlooms are located in the regions. Industry sources have said that the strike is causing a loss of ₹35 crore per day. The production loss is estimated at around 100 lakh meters of fabric. Around two lakh workers are directly affected, and another three lakh workers are indirectly affected by the strike. 

Weavers have continued to strike in protest of power tariff hike in Tamil Nadu for a week now, while the government has given no indication to accept the demand of rolling it back. Weaving industry has said that it cannot bear power tariff hike given the current market situation. India’s cotton yarn market sentiments have dampened further due to the strike.

Powerloom owners said that the new power tariff hike will put an additional burden of ₹8,000-9,000 on each powerloom unit per month. The industry is not in a position to bear this hike. 

Tamil Nadu chief minister recently defended the decision of power tariff hike saying that electricity rates are still lower than other states. It shows that the government is not willing to accept the demand of the industry, which may cause the strike to continue for a longer time and disrupt the entire textile value chain. 

A Ludhiana based trader told Fibre2Fashion, “If the strike continues, yarn market may see a further decline in yarn prices. Many large-sized domestic garment companies buy lakhs of meters of fabric from Ludhiana to get finished garments made in Tiruppur. It may be disturbed.” 

Tiruppur market witnessed a decline in cotton yarn prices. A local veteran trader Purusottam Parmanandka told Fibre2Fashion, “Yarn demand always eases when the industry faces strikes. Yarn prices may further see a decline if the strike continues as there is no demand for weaving yarn.” 

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)