V Devanathan
The Times of India
January 13, 2014
Increasing import of Chinese products into India has been a cause of concern for industrialists and traders. As India becomes an open economy, more and more products flood the domestic market from abroad. Small and medium-scale industrialists in Madurai are alarmed by the increasing arrival of Chinese goods.
A book penned by A Shanmuga Velayudhan, a noted industrialist and former president of an industrial body, reveals that due to Chinese exports to India over 50 lakh new jobs have been created in the communist country. In 2013 alone, India imported Chinese products to the tune of Rs 2,84,38,458.25 lakh, whereas our export to them is only Rs 73,52,956.23 lakh.
“Furniture is the one of the local industries facing closure due to Chinese import. A lot of small units were involved in making furniture in Madurai. Now they are losing business. Low-quality Chinese furniture is imported and sold at prices lower than the production cost here. People ultimately go for lesser price. Unlike local furniture, China supplies fully-automated machine products, hence cheap,” said V S Manimaran, president of Madurai District Tiny and Small-Scale Industries Association (Maditssia).
Small and medium-scale industrialists in Madurai said local manufacturing units and jobs are affected because of unrestricted import from China. The local industries affected are furniture, toys, footwear, candies and even readymade clothes, industrialists said.
Toy-making units are facing a shutdown in Madurai. Local wooden toys are outrun by Chinese products. Though, they have poisonous content, people purchase them for their low cost, said S V S S Velshankar, secretary of Tamil Nadu Food Grains Merchant Association (TFMA), Madurai.
Footwear industry too could not withstand competition from Chinese products. Several small units faced closedown due to increasing import of Chinese footwears, Velshankar added.
“There were as many as 25 to 30 medium-sized ready made units operating in Madurai. The industry faced setback in the recent years. At present there are only seven units. They too are struggling to survive the Chinese competition,” said S P Jayapragasam, president of TFMA.
“The problem prevails not just in the state but throughout the nation. We cannot give competition to Chinese products as the scale of production is high there. Moreover, the cost of production is comparatively lesser in China,” said S Rethinavelu, senior president, Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce.
