Ludhiana Spinners Association (LSA), which wants to resume production of yarn, is now demanding that the anti- dumping duty on the import of acrylic fiber should be withdrawn with immediate effect.

Acrylic fiber is the basic raw material for making value added products like sweaters, shawls, etc. and continuation of the duty on this fiber will be double whammy for us, particularly in the times of this pandemic. Millions of units of spinning, textile and garment sector are of the view that in a recent petition filed for review of the anti-dumping duty the decision taken will be made purely on merit basis and duty will be totally waived.

However, three big wigs of the acrylic fiber industry for protecting their profits are putting lakhs of jobs and thousands of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) at stake and lobbying for continuation of the anti-dumping duty on the acrylic fibre. These three players wish to control the market by putting other spinners and hosiery industry at a disadvantage. It’s a matter of survival for these millions of units. Combined together, these fiber producers employ about 6,000 persons versus 45,000-50,000 employed by 50-60 spinning factories of Ludhiana on which the knitwears industry is fully dependant. Besides, nearly 10 lakh persons are employed by the knitwear industry.

Ravindra Verma of Northern India Textile Mills Association (NITMA) also requested the government to provide a level playing field to the spinners and knitwear manufacturers in Ludhiana as users of this raw material have always been at the receiving end of these unwarranted duties, whereas the few Indian producers of acrylic fibres are enjoying a very strong financial situation.