Puri: People associated with coir industries have expressed displeasure over the state government’s failure to provide assistance to them in the wake of cyclonic storm Fani that ravaged several coastal districts May 3.
Members of Odisha State Coir Industries and Manufacturers’ Association have alleged that the state government is yet to take any step to assess the damage caused to the coir industry by the cyclone.
The coir industries’ body claimed that it has raised the issue with the state Chief Secretary, Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Odisha Coir Corporation but nothing has been done to assess the damage caused to the coir industry sector so far.
According to the association, the cyclonic storm has caused extensive damage to the coir industries in Puri, Khurda, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara districts.
The association claimed that more than a lakh people usually depend on the coir industry to earn a livelihood. The artisans usually produce ropes, decorative pieces and household goods by using coir.
Odisha State Coir Industries’ and Manufacturers’ Association secretary Prasanta Kumar Mahapatra said hundreds of families in Puri district have accepted coir work as a source of livelihood.
“Farmers had opted for coconut farming on 9,986 hectares of land in Puri district. Many families had availed bank loans to arrange equipment to manufacture coir products. However, the cyclonic storm has caused severe damage to the coir industry,” Mahapatra said.
He further divulged that around 90 per cent of coconut trees in Puri district have been either uprooted or damaged by the summer storm. “The equipment and sheds of many coir artisans have been completely damaged by the cyclone. Each artisan has incurred losses anywhere between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 10 lakh due to the cyclone. However, the state government has turned a blind eye to the coir sector,” Mahapatra said.
Mahapatra, meanwhile, urged the state government to provide financial assistance to coir artisans. “The state government should provide aid for repairing of coir artisans’ equipment. The artisans should be supplied with subsidised power for five years,” Mahapatra said.
