Faced with a shortfall of 7.6 lakh bales of gunny bags for procurement of food grains by the government procuring agencies in 2009-10, the Centre is exploring the possibility of using high-density polyethylene bags, polypropylene bags and old gunny bags for paddy packaging.
Eco-concerns drive demand for biodegradable bags on the global market, giving rise to the exports of shopping jute bags from Bangladesh.
Jute goods makers export around 100,000 shopping bags a month on average to different countries. They hope scope for more shipments will widen next year, as some European countries are set to ban polythene bags in 2010.
NEW DELHI: Walking a green carpet welcome and clad in a lush green sari, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit set the tone for World Environment Day celebrations in the Capital on Friday by inaugurating Chalta Phirta Environment Campaign
Agri-experts have said that increased farming of jute could revive the past glory of the golden fibre to usher in a new era in the country's economy as well as save the environment and soil health.
Jute cultivation in all eight upazilas of the district has been facing a setback due to continuous hot spell during the current season.
According to district Agriculture Extension Department office, it was fixed up to bring 30,000 hectares of land under jute cultivation, one of the main jute producing areas of the country.
Experts here have said that jute has been regaining its past glory very fast now following alarming and huge adverse effects of synthetic fibres on the environment and ecology in recent decades everywhere in the world.
Namrata Acharya / Kolkata April 11, 2009, 0:07 IST
In order to revive the jute industry, the Union government has set up a high level committee with representatives from the Union finance and labour ministries, West Bengal government, labour unions and the The Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA).
Jute mainly grows in eastern India. It has been used as packaging material for different commodities and also to some extent for carpet backing, hessian, decorative fabrics etc. Due to stiff competition from synthetic fibre, it is necessary to find some new uses of jute fibre and its by product.
New Delhi: Seen for long as an unattractive and coarse raw material fit primarily for gunny bags, jute is enjoying its days under the sun like never before, more so after the Delhi Government imposed a ban on plastic carry bags.
Two months ago, a massive strike by 18 trade unions threatened to completely hogtie work in the Rs 6,500-crore jute industry. On December 1, the unions went on an indefinite strike, demanding higher wages and settlement of pending financial negotiations.
