TDS Desk:

Indian textile mills are dumping yarn and fabric in the Bangladesh market as part of a “conspiracy” to destroy its textile sector, alleged Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) President Showkat Aziz Russell.

At a press conference held on Monday (February 24) at the Crystal Palace in Gulshan Club, he said, “The Indian government, through various subsidies and support schemes, is behind this plot.”

He claimed that Indian mills have become a threat to Bangladesh’s industry by selling yarn and fabric at prices lower than production costs, which are being smuggled through illegal channels and land ports.

“If this continues, our textile industry will be destroyed, just like the fate of our jute mills,” he added.

BTMA President said, “We have already appealed to the government to stop the import of yarn through land ports and to impose anti-dumping duties on Indian yarn.”

“We request [the government] that imports through land ports be stopped until the capacity of our land ports is improved to prevent false declarations of yarn.”

He also demanded that the interim government take action to investigate the dumping by Indian mills.

Showkat Aziz said that during the previous BNP government, the import of yarn through land ports was stopped, but after the Awami League came to power, it was resumed.

He also mentioned that local mills are currently holding stockpiles of yarn worth Tk8,000 crore-Tk10,000 crore.

BTMA Vice President Saleudh Zaman Khan alleged that India is providing a subsidy of 11 rupees per kilogram of yarn, effectively supporting dumping at the state level.

He said Bangladesh’s garment factories are not benefiting from the lower yarn prices, and ultimately, the advantage is going to buyers.

DEMAND TO LOWER GAS PRICES TO TK20 PER UNIT

Saleudh Zaman also demanded that the price of gas be reduced to below Tk20 per unit, stating that due to the ongoing gas crisis, mills are only operating at 50%-60% capacity.

Engineer Rajib Haider Munna questioned, “For whose benefit is LNG import being encouraged when there are gas reserves underground?”

He also noted that textile and garment industries cannot survive by relying on LNG imports. He warned that factory closures might be imminent, saying, “It will be impossible to run factories with gas at Tk70; therefore, on the

Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) hearing day, we will hand over the keys to our factories.”

BTMA Vice President Md Abul Kalam demanded that interest rates be brought down to single digits in order to encourage investment, and called for them to be fixed at single digits for the next three years.