The Mewar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) in Bhilwara is going through tough times with no new member enrolled in the last three months, Instead, existing members urging it to change their registration — from textile units to other businesses.

For the last two years there has been no growth in the textile industry, the mainstay of Bhilwara’s economy. The city is home to 850 textile units that create direct employment for 85,000 people and indirect employment for 60,000. Unlike in other industrial towns, here migrants make up just 20 per cent of the workforce, which means it is locals who are employed in the units. Bhilwara is the state’s largest textile center, producing cotton yarn, polyster or viscose-blended yarn and fabrics, denim and other textile products. Its decline started with demonetisation in November 2016, which reduced purchasing power for few months.

The Supreme Court order directing industrial units to not use petcoke in order to control air pollution, increased their dependence on coal and lignite. The worst fear of MCCI is a lockdown of units if the government remains indifferent to industry needs. They have also been requesting a rebate in power tariffs.