1

Jute industries
Introduction:
The India jute industry is an integral part of the Indian Textile
Industry. India jute industry is an old industry in India. The jute industry in
India engages around 2.6 lakh workers directly and around 1.4 lakh workers
indirectly in the allied sectors

India jute industry contributes to the national exchequer from exports

and through taxes and levies. The central government owns 6 jute mills, the
state government owns 4, 2 are under cooperatives, and 64 jute mills are
under private ownerships. India has around 78 jute mills and the eastern state
of West Bengal alone has around 61 jute mills. 7 jute mills are located in
Andhra Pradesh, 3 each in Utter Pradesh and Bihar and 1 each in Orissa,
Assam, Tripura, and Madhya Pradesh. In the financial year 2006-07 (April-
September) exports of total jute goods was at 104.3 thousand M.T valued at
Rs. 583.55 crore.

History:
Jute has been an integral part of Bengali culture, which is shared by
both Bangladesh and West Bengal of India. In the 19th and early 20th
centuries, much of the raw jute fibre of Bengal were exported to the United
Kingdom, where it was then processed in mills concentrated in Dundee
("jute weaver" was a recognised trade occupation in the 1901 UK census),
but this trade had largely ceased by about 1970 due to the entrance of
synthetic fibres.
When George Auckland an Englishman, set up the first jute spinning mill on
banks of river Hooghly, West Bengal in 1855, little did he realise that he had
planed the first seeds of a giant Indian industry. Since then, Indian jute has
come a long way. True the going has been tough., but today the industry can
boast of a wide range of jute products available and are in huge demand in
both the markets in India and abroad. The invention of new end-uses
alongwith the preference for eco-friendly and bio-degradable products the
world over has been an important factor for the increasing demand for Jute
products.
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Cultivation:
The monsoon climate during the monsoon season.
Temperatures ranging 20˚ C to 40˚ C and relative humidity of 70%–
80% are favourable for successful cultivation.

White jute (Corchorus capsularis)

Several historical documents (including, Ain-e-Akbari by Abul Fazal
in 1590) state that the poor villagers of India used to wear clothes made of
jute. Simple handlooms and hand spinning wheels were used by the
weavers, who used to spin cotton yarns as well. History also states that
Indians, especially Bengalis, used ropes and twines made of white jute from
ancient times for household and other uses.

Tossa jute (Corchorus olitorius)

Is an Afro-Arabian variety. It is quite popular for its leaves that are
used as an ingredient in a mucilaginous potherb called molokhiya (‫ ملوخية‬a
word of uncertain etymology), popular in certain Arab countries. The Book
of Job in the Hebrew Bible mentions this vegetable potherb as Jew's mallow.
Tossa jute fibre is softer, silkier, and stronger than white jute. This variety
astonishingly showed good sustainability in the climate of the Ganges Delta.
Along with white jute, tossa jute has also been cultivated in the soil of
Bengal where it is known as paat from the start of the 19th century.
Currently, the Bengal region (West Bengal, India, and Bangladesh) is the
largest global producer of the tossa jute variety.
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Organized Sector:
No of Jute Mills : 78

Annual Production : 1.6 Million MT

Workers Employed : 266 Thousand (direct & indirect)

Families dependant : 4 million household (direct &

indirect)

Main Products : Sacking, Hessian, Carpet Backing

Manufactured Cloth, Yarn, Food Grade Products,
Geo-textiles

Informal Sector:

No. of registered units 700 units ( approx. )

Total Employment 63000 ( approx. )

Main Products Manufactured Jute Bags

Jute Blended Fabrics
Jute Blended Carpets
Giftware
Handicrafts
Decorative Articles
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Strengths of Indian Jute Industry

• Huge production capacity

• Environment friendly packaging material
• Efficient raw material manufacturing capacity
• Large pool of skilled and cheap labor
• Entrepreneurial skills
• Huge export potential
• Large domestic market
• Very low import content
• Flexible textile manufacturing systems

Potential of Jute industry

The jute industry has been expanding really fast spanning from a
wide range of life style consumer products, with all courtesy to the
versatility of Jute. Innovative ways of bleaching, dyeing and finishing
processes - the jute industry now provides finished jute products that are
softer, have a luster and also an aesthetic appeal.

Changing scenario of Jute industry

At present, jute has been defined as an eco-friendly natural fiber
with utmost versatility ranging from low value geo-textiles to high value
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carpet, apparel, composites, decoratives, upholstery furnishings etc.

In future, a number of jute mills and mini-jute plants have been seen to
be engaged in jute products and jute blended yarns. We all know that the
uses of jute are manifold, with the traditional usage pattern remaining
constricted to packing, hessian and carpet backing.

Jute Production in India

Import of Raw Jute in 2008-09 has dropped by 66% in
quantity and by 55% in value terms, whereas import of jute products saw
a surge by 23% in quantity and by 47% in value terms when compared
with the figures of 2007-08. The EXIM Policy states that import of raw
jute and jute products in India should be considered as free items without
duty.

State-wise Jute production in the last 3 years

Period: July-June / Area: '000 Hectares / Qty: '000 Bales
2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 (Estimated)
State Area Production Area Production Area Production
West Bengal 595 8411 610 8216 584 7900
Bihar 127 1253 131 1251 147 1402
Jharkhand - - - - - -
Assam 58 559 60 657 61 674
Orissa 5 48 6 50 11 104
Uttar Pradesh - - - - (0.1) 1
Tripura 1 4 (0.5) 4 1 8
Meghalaya 4 35 4 35 6 50
Nagaland 2 6 3 6 2 21
Others - - - - - -
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Total 792 10316 814 10219 812 10160

Import of jute and jute products in last 3 years

Qty: M.Ton and Value: Rs. /Lakhs
Period 2008 - 2007 - 20082006 - 2007
2009
Qty. Value Qty. Value Qty. Value
Raw Jute 59,042 8,900.31 1,71,800 19,672.39 94,363 15,031.15
Jute 70,935 20,299.48 57,688 13,809.41 60,93217,162.87
Products

Top ten jute producers — 2008

Production
Country Footnote
(Tonnes)
India 1 846 000 F
Bangladesh 848 715 F
Pakistan 448 739 F
People's Republic of China 48 000F
Myanmar 30 000 F
Uzbekistan 20 000 F
Nepal 16 988 F
Vietnam 8 800 F
Thailand 5 000 F
Sudan 3 300F
Egypt 2 200 F
World ' 3 225 551 '
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Features

1. Jute fibre is 100% bio-degradable and recyclable and thus environmentally friendly.

2. It is a natural fibre with golden and silky shine and hence called The Golden Fibre.

3. It is the cheapest vegetable fibre procured from the bast or skin of the plant's stem.

4. It is the second most important vegetable fibre after cotton, in terms of usage, global
consumption, production, and availability.

5. It has high tensile strength, low extensibility, and ensures better breathability of
fabrics. Therefore, jute is very suitable in agricultural commodity bulk packaging.

6. It helps to make best quality industrial yarn, fabric, net, and sacks. It is one of the most
versatile natural fibres that has been used in raw materials for packaging, textiles, non-
textile, construction, and agricultural sectors. Bulking of yarn results in a reduced
breaking tenacity and an increased breaking extensibility when blended as a ternary
blend.

7. Unlike the hemp fiber, jute is not a form of cannabis.

8. The best source of jute in the world is the Bengal Delta Plain in the Ganges Delta,
most of which is occupied by Bangladesh.
World production of jute 1995-2009
PRODUCTION OF JUTE GOODS
8
QTY : IN 000' M.T.

(APRIL / MARCH)
HESSIAN
SACKING
CBC
OTHERS
TOTAL

1995 - 96
413.9
676.3
30.5
5312.3
1433.0

1996 - 97
368.7
666.6
25.2
340.4
1400.9

1997 - 98
392.4
864.6
19.8
401.6
1678.4

1998 - 99
344.1
903.3
18.5
330.3
1596.2

1999 - 00
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CONSUMPTION OF RAW JUTE

QTY : IN lakh bales

1998 - 1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005 - 2006 - 2007 - 2008 -
99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09
CARRYOVER 27.00 22.00 10.50 7.00 16.00 34.00 33.00 14.00 8.00 23.00 22.00
PRODUCTION 83.00 78.00 90.00 105.00 110.00 90.00 75.00 85.00 100.00 99.00 82.00
IMPORT 9.00 8.00 4.00 4.00 9.00 5.00 3.00 7.00 4.00 8.00 2.00
TOTAL SUPPLY 119.00 108.00 104.50 116.00 135.00 129.00 111.00 106.00 112.00 130.00 106.00
DOMESTIC
CONSUMPTION
7.00 7.00 7.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 9.00 9.00 9.00
MILL
CONSUMPTION 90.00 90.50 90.50 92.00 93.00 88.00 90.00 90.00 80.00 99.00 89.00
TOTAL DEMAND 97.00 97.50 97.50 100.00 101.00 96.00 98.00 98.00 89.00 108.00 98.00
CARRY OVER 22.00 10.50 7.00 16.00 34.00 33.00 14.00 8.00 23.00 22.00 8.00

Major Growing Areas

Jute thrives best in damp heat, and the climatic conditions prevalent
in West Bengal in India are well suited for its cultivation. Indian states
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ideally suitable for the cultivation of jute are:

• West Bengal
• Bihar
• Assam
• Orissa
• Uttar Pradesh
Mesta, or Kenif, botanically known as Hibiscus Cannabinus, is also
grown in these areas as a textile fiber. Mesta is a coarser, more brittle
fiber, and is used by the jute mills in admixture with jute to obtain
certain desired properties.

Jute mills to move court over textiles ministry report

Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar October 08, 2010: With the Union
textiles ministry scrapping the Tariff Commission (TC)'s
report of 2009 on fair price of jute bags, prominent jute mill owners
have decided to take the legal recourse to redress their grievances
and ensure the implementation of the TC report.
Some of the top jute mill owners are going to file a Public
Interest Litigation (PIL) soon in the Calcutta High Court against the
textiles ministry's decision to scrap the Tariff Commission's report of
2009. The jute industry cannot afford to sell B Twill jute bags at prices
that prevailed during 2001, said a top official of Indian Jute Mills
Association (Ijma), the apex body of the jute industry. Source:
Business Standard

Awareness camps to promote mesta

Andhra Pradesh, September 13, 2010: The Andhra Pradesh
Jute Development Centre (APJDC) will organise awareness camps
across the state to promote Mesta crop, used as a raw material for
jute.Farmers in the state cultivate mesta on only 38,000-40,000 acre.
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On an acre, mesta production is in between 10 and 12 quintals. The

state has 30 jute units, which require 2-2.5 million quintals of mesta.
However, as the current production is about 400,000 quintals, mills
have to depend on West Bengal and Bangladesh for the remaining
raw material, said B V Rama Rao, vice chairman and managing
director, APJDC. The awareness camps will be held during October.
APJDC aims to increase the mesta cultivated area to 1.5-2 million
acres in the state in coming years, he said
Rama Rao said the jute parks proposed by APJDC in
Visakhapatnam, Guntur and Rangaeeddy districts would attract a
number of jute mills, which would require huge quantities of mesta.
Source: Business Standard

Centre turns down proposal for setting up first jute park

Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar, September 06, 2010: In a blow to the
jute industry, the Centre has turned down the proposal to set up the
country's first jute park at Shaktigarh (West Bengal). The proposed
jute park project has been hanging fire for over two years with the
erstwhile Jute Manufacturers' Development Council, now called the
National Jute Board (NJB), raising technical blockades and the
departments of panchayati raj and land reforms of the West Bengal
government locking horns over the authorized delegation of the title
of the land allotted for the project.

Weaknesses of Indian Jute Industry

• Imports of cheap and alternative textiles from other Asian neighbors

• Use of outdated manufacturing technology
• Poor supply chain management
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• Huge unorganized and decentralized sector

• High production cost
Jute Mills Association chairman Sanjay Kajaria resigns
Kolkata, February 26, 2010: The tripartite agreement in the jute
industry which paved the way for ending the strike after 61 days has
triggered resentment within the industry with Sanjay Kajaria,
chairman of the industry’s apex body, the Indian Jute Mills
Association, submitting his resignation.“I was accused of
surrendering to the government and the unions”, Mr. Kajaria told The
Hindu, saying he is not prepared to accept this charge. “It was my
moral responsibility to resign,” he said. The strike was called off
following an agreement which would result in a Rs.1,164 increase in
their monthly wages including a dearness component of Rs.321.

Raw jute output may fall 15-20% on poor monsoon

Bhubaneswar Sep 03, 2010: Raw jute production is likely to fall
15-20 per cent short of the targeted 1.07 million bales in 2010-11
because of deficient monsoon.According to industry estimates, there
may be a shortfall of 1-1.5 million bales this financial year.
Starved of the fibre crop, jute mills have stocks for only seven
days. Due to shortage of water, the harvest is almost 50 per cent less
in the major growing districts of Murshidabad and Nadia in West
Bengal Together, these two account for over 60 per cent of West
Bengal’s jute production. The West Bengal government has declared
11 districts as drought-hit, out of which seven have jute fields.

The Indian Jute Mills Association (Ijma) has pressed the panic
button and put the members on red alert. The shortfall in raw jute
output has sparked fears of closure of jute mills, leading to job losses
and labour unrest. Meanwhile, there is rampant hoarding of raw jute
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and prices have shot up by Rs 700 a quintal, which is almost 35 per

higher than the normal, say sources. At present, the price of the TD-4
variety of West Bengal raw jute is Rs 3,100 a quintal. The jute
industry has blamed the Centre, the West Bengal government and
jute research bodies for not making arrangements for water retting as
a buffer against bad monsoon. The West Bengal agriculture
department and the state textile and agriculture departments have not
responded to the repeated requests by Ijma.
About four million jute farmers are engaged in sowing this inter-
crop between two rice seasons on almost 80,000 hectares of land.
Over the past few years, the jute acreage has come down by almost
0.3 million hectares as farmers have moved to other remunerative
crops like oilseeds and vegetables. Even the rise in the minimum
support price of jute has failed to attract the farmers. Source:
Business-Standard

Textile ministry seeks relaxation in jute packaging Act

Mumbai Aug 04, 2010: The textile ministry has recommended
relaxation in the Jute Packaging Material Act 1987. Sources close to
the development said the proposal was under the consideration of the
Cabinet and a decision would be taken soon.
This assumes significance as the chemicals and fertiliser
ministry has demanded a repeal of the Act to increase the use of
plastic bags.Ministry sources said the Act could not be repealed as it
would hurt a particular commodity. However, it would be relaxed so
that other materials could be used along with jute, they added. The
chemicals and fertilisers ministry is of the view that in a market
economy, manufacturers should have the liberty to use the material
that they find convenient. At present, it is mandatory to use jute bags
for sugar and foodgrain. However, according to the proposed
relaxation, other materials might be allowed to be used for packaging
some foodgrains up to certain quantity.“The relaxation will be done
because this year, while jute production is good, foodgrain production
is expected to be high as well. So, there should not be a problem for
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the jute industry,” said the official. It will also be a great incentive for
the plastic industry. In fact, the chemicals and fertilisers ministry had
recommended a repeal of the Act based on a technical study
conducted by the Indian Centre for Plastics in the Environment
(ICPE). Source: Business Standard

Industrial Tripartite Committee on Jute Industry

New Delhi , July 20, 2010 (PIB): A meeting of the Industrial
Tripartite Committee on Jute Industry was held on 20th July, 2010 at
New Delhi under the chairmanship of Shri Harish Rawat, Union
Minister of State for Labour and Employment. The representatives
from workers? organizations (BMS, INTUC, VITU, AIUTUC),
Employers? Federations (AJMA, AIMO, and Laghu Udyog Bharti) of
the Jute Industry sector as well as representatives of State
Governments of West Bengal and Bihar participated in this Meeting.

The Committee discussed the issues related with lower

productivity in the Jute Industry, non-payment of gratuity to workers in
the Jute Industry, non-payment of provident fund dues to the workers
and non-payment of ESI deductions from the workers to the ESIC. A
presentation on the status of the Jute Industry and initiatives taken by
the EPFO and ESIC to help the workers in the Jute Industry was
made in the meeting. While there was a broad consensus between
workers, unions and employers associations on the need to provide
assistance in the form of soft loan to the employers so that old
gratuity dues are cleared, the workers
unions unanimously voiced the plight of workers who were yet to
receive their gratuity. They also highlighted the poor safety conditions
in the mills, varied wage structure in the industry, the need to protect
this industry in view of environment friendliness, etc. The Employers
associations raised the issues related with squeezing of profits in the
industry and allowing them to utilize their non-productive assets in a
better way in order to create funds for clearing the social security
dues.

Summing up the deliberations, Shri Rawat underlined the need

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for enhancing productivity of the industry through greater emphasis

on research and development. He directed that apex trade unions
should also be informed while carrying out joint inspections by EPFO
and ESIC. He pointed out that non-payment of gratuity dues results in
the old workers continuing work in the Industry in the hope of getting
their dues cleared in future which prevents the generation of new
employment in the Industry. He requested the Ministry of Textiles to
take a view on the proposal of providing a soft loan to clear the
statutory social security dues. He assured the participants that DG,
FASLI will be advised to study the safety measures prevalent in the
Jute Industry in order to assess the safety conditions. He also
stressed the need for having a study conducted to analyze the wage
structure for various categories of workers in the industry.
The Minister thanked all the participants for their suggestions
and stressed the need for a constructive cooperation from all stake
holders workers, employers as well as State Governments so that
legitimate concerns of the workers as well as the industry are taken
care of.

National Jute Policy-2005,

The National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) of the

Government, recognizing the importance of jute to farmers and
workers, and to the economy of jute growing states, and its special
ecological importance world- wide, resolved that ;the jute industry will
receive a fresh impetus in all respects.
One of the six basic principles for governance for the NCMP is to
enhance the welfare and well-being of farmers, farm labour and
workers, particularly those in the unorganized sector and assure a
secure future for their families in every respect. Government
recognizes the significance of jute in India's economy, providing
sustenance to more than 40 lakh people including jute farmers,
workmen, labourers and self employed artisans and weavers,
especially in the Eastern and North-eastern parts of the country,
where it is the main stay of agro based industries. World over, it has
been recognized that jute and allied fibres occupy a unique position
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as eco-friendly, bio-degradable renewable natural fibres with

substantial value addition at each stage of processing.
Government also recognizes the fact that this important sector of the
economy has not been given its due importance in the recent past. In
view of this commitment, and Taking note of the new challenges and
opportunities presented by the changing global environment of
integration in the development of natural fibres; Acknowledging the
growing demand for diversified and innovative jute products in the
world market; Appreciating the strengths and weaknesses of our own
jute sector as well as those of our major competitors in the field; and
Deciding to redefine the goals and objectives, focus on thrust areas
and sharpen strategy in tune with the times, the National Jute Policy
– 2005 is enunciated as follows:

The objectives of the policy:

a). Enable millions of jute farmers to produce better quality
jute fibre for value added diversified jute products and enable them
to enhance per hectare yield of raw jute substantially;

b). Facilitate the Jute Sector to attain and sustain a pre-

eminent global standing in the manufacture and export of jute
products;

c). Enable the jute industry to build world class state-of-

the-art manufacturing capabilities in conformity with environmental
standards, and, for this purpose, to encourage Foreign Direct
Investment, as well as research and development in the sector;
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c). Sustain and strengthen the traditional knowledge,

skills, and capabilities of our weavers and craftspeople engaged in
the manufacture of traditional as well as innovative jute products;

d). Expand productive employment by enabling the growth

of the industry; Make Information Technology (IT), an integral part
of the entire value chain of jute and the production of jute goods,
and thereby facilitate the industry to achieve international
standards in terms of quality, design, and marketing;

SECTORAL INITIATIVES
Agriculture
Initiatives in the agriculture sector will embrace a basic,
strategic and adaptive research on jute within a time frame to ensure
qualitative and quantitative improvement of the crop. The existing
gene pool of jute and mesta will be strengthened, and new breeding
techniques will be explored.
Technology transfer will be encouraged through industry-
agriculture linkages and the present extension system will be
reorganised and restructured to make it more target oriented.
The organized Seed Production System will have effective linkages
with all concerned Departments to ensure production and availability
of quality seeds.
Under the Jute Technology Mission, new market yards will be
set up wherever necessary and post harvest practices and machinery
will be modernised through interface with manufacturing firms.
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Infrastructural facilities will be provided for procurement and farmer

information centres will also be an integral part of the services to be
rendered to farmers. The grading system will be restructured to make
it more objective. Efforts will be made to motivate and provide
incentives to farmers to produce better quality jute.

Modernisation of the Jute Industry

The jute industry in India is beset with many problems,
including competition from the synthetic sector, high labour cost,
obsolescence of machinery and uneconomic working.These factors
have led to large scale sickness in the industry.
The approach for the jute sector will be directed towards reviving the
jute economy through supportive measures covering research and
development; technology upgradation; the creation of infrastructure
for storage and marketing of raw jute; and product and market
development activities for jute and diversified jute products.

The Government will ensure a reasonable market for jute products by

continuing the ongoing policy of reserving food grains and sugar to be
packed in packaging material made from jute. The quantum of
reservation will be as
approved by the Government from time to time.
In order to achieve this, a concerted Programme for the

Modernisation and Technological Up gradation of the

Manufacturing Sector will be taken up. This will include
(i) reorientation of manufacture of jute goods as per current
international requirements while addressing the issues of quality and
cost competitiveness;
(ii) to energise the jute yarn and twine making sector in view of the
rise in demand for Jute Diversified Products;
(iii) adopting environmental friendly manufacturing processes in
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the jute sector; and

(iv) augmenting the research and development efforts to
commercialise jute technical textiles including geo-textiles. The
existing schemes like the Textile Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS)
and the JMDC Incentive Scheme for Modernisation of the Jute
Industry will be strengthened.

Public Sector Enterprises

Efforts will be made to restructure and revitalize the existing
Public Sector Undertakings in the Jute Sector, namely the Jute
Corporation of India and the National Jute Manufactures Corporation.
Procurement of raw jute by the Jute Corporation of India will continue
and the Government will continue to compensate the Jute
Corporation of India for procurement of jute under the Minimum
Support Price (MSP scheme).The Government has already initiated
steps to revive the Khardah and Kinnison units of the National Jute
Manufactures Corporation Ltd.

Marketing
The objectives of the effort for marketing will be
(i) to improve the ratio of domestic consumption to exports from
the existing 82%:18% to 65%:35% in the next ten years,
(ii) to encourage the establishment of professional marketing
wings in the organized jute sector, and
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(iii) to identify tariff and non-tariff barriers against the export of

jute and jute products from India, and develop appropriate strategies
to remove such barriers.
Domestic Marketing:
Considering the immense potential of jute products in the domestic
market, focused attention will be given to untapped sectors. The
thrust will be on adopting suitable market promotion programmes for
increasing consumer awareness, and highlighting the environmental
advantages of jute by working closely with environment groups.

International Marketing
With the objective of increasing exports to Rs.5000 crore by 2010
from the present level of Rs.1000 crores:
1. A multi-disciplinary institutional mechanism will be established
to formulate policy measures and specific action plans, including
those relating to the WTO and for closely monitoring financing
proposals;
2. Strategic alliances will be forged with an aim to gain access to
technology;
3. A brand equity fund, exclusively for jute and jute products will
be set up.This will be consistent with WTO norms;
4. The proposed Jute Board will incorporate an Export Promotion
Council which will play the role of facilitator and professional
consultant for dealing with disputes under various agreements of the
WTO, establishing warehousing facilities in major jute and jute
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product importing countries, and identifying the existing patent issues

with a view to patenting Indian R&D efforts.

Research and Development

For the successful development of next-generation Jute
Machinery to reduce the cost of production and / or quality
improvement, the following measures have to be put in place in a
time span of five years:
a) To complete comprehensive Benchmarking (through
Technology Audit) to assess the present technological status of the
jute industry.
b) To formulate a 5 year Plan for machinery development, for both
the organized and decentralized sectors (and also for the cottage
industry).
c) To establish a separate R & D set-up in the area of a Public
;Private
Partnership in consultation with the appropriate Ministries of the
Government of India. IJIRA, the only Textile Research Association
related to jute under the Ministry of Textiles, will be revamped to give
a market and industry driven focus to its Research and Development
efforts.

Diversified and Composite Jute Products and Jute Handicrafts

a) There is an expansion of the market for jute composite
products and geo-textiles in both the domestic and International
sectors. Continued and focused attention will be given to handicrafts,
which will include the upgradation of skills, the creation of a better
work environment, design and technology intervention, and the
development of clusters for specific crafts with common service
facilities, and the overall improvement of infrastructure, and market
development.
b) A full-fledged Design and Development Centre, and dedicated
retail outlets in public-private initiative mode for diversified jute
products in all the towns and cities with a population of more than 5
lakhs will be established.
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Institutional Restructuring and establishment of a Jute

Board
To rectify the systemic ills of lack of coordination among the
several jute related organizations under different Ministries and
Departments of the Government, and to synchronise and synergise
the integrated development of the jute sector as a whole, the
proposal to set up a National Jute Board will be implemented. This is
necessary to synthesize the various layers of Governmental decision-
making in a federal set up. This body will subsume, merge, and
integrate the functions of various institutions currently operating in the
jute sector.

The mandate of the proposed Jute Board will be as follows:

i) To restructure the present regulatory framework so as to
provide adequate incentive to all stakeholders in the jute sector to
produce goods and services in an efficient manner so as to maximize
socio-economic benefits.
ii) To subsume and revamp the Office of the Jute Commissioner
and transform it from an office of regulation to a facilitator of
development in the jute sector.
iii) To establish a Jute R&D fund and Venture capital assistance
fund for the development of efficient jute manufacturing machinery,
and the commercialization of new products;
iv) To strengthen and facilitate the growth of HRD institutions like
the Institute of Jute Technology (IJT) on innovative lines.
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v) To review and revitalise the working of the R& D institutions like

the Indian Jute Industries Research Association (IJIRA) to focus
research on industry needs.
vi) To subsume, merge and professionalise field organisations like
Jute Manufacture Development Council (JMDC) and the National
Centre for Jute Diversification (NCJD) under the Ministry of Textiles
to enable them to play their assigned role of facilitators of change and
growth effectively.
vii) To explore the possibility of establishing a National Institute of
Natural Fibres with the objective of harmonizing developmental and
promotional activities pertaining to all natural fibres and to have a
better sharing of experience and knowledge in related fibres

viii) To establish a National Jute and Jute Textile Museum in India

to preserve and highlight the heritage of jute.Subsidiary institutions
functioning under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture under
Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE/ICAR)
like the National Institute for Research on Jute and Allied Fibre
Technology (NIRJAFT), and the Central Research Institute for Jute
and Allied Fibres (CRIJAF) will be integrated with the Jute Board in a
meaningful relationship, as also the functions and issues presently
being administrated by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Jute Technology Mission

A Jute Technology Mission, which has been approved in
principle by the Planning Commission, will be operationalised with the
appropriate sub-structure of mini-missions. The objective is to
consolidate the gains from past efforts in the jute sector, and help it to
emerge as an intrinsically competitive and integrated entity. The Jute
Technology Mission will encompass the sub-systems pertaining to
agricultural research and seed development, agronomic
practices, harvest and post harvest techniques, the primary and
secondary processing of raw jute, diversified product development,
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market development, and marketing and distribution.

Mechanisms for Implementation of the Policy

The organisations working under the Ministry of Textiles will
be reoriented, right sized, and restructured, to act as facilitators
instead of regulatory bodies, with the mandate and role of each being
reviewed and redefined over the next two years. Simultaneously,
regulations and controls will be reviewed and progressively reduced.
Some of the specific changes will be the establishment of the Jute
Board, structured to serve the developmental needs of the industry
and restructuring of the operational arms in charge of exports and
diversification to enable them to devise dynamic strategies for the
export markets.
In conclusion, the Government is committed to providing a conducive
environment to enable the Indian jute and jute textile sector to realize
its full potential, to achieve global excellence, and to fulfill its
obligations to the different sections of society. In the fulfillment of
these objectives, the Government will enlist the co-operation and
involvement of all stakeholders and ensure an effective and
responsive delivery system.