Centre gets rid of price cap on jute, brings relief to farmers, MSMEs

New Delhi, May 20 (KNN) The central government on Thursday announced the withdrawal of price cap on jute which is expected to help, mills, farmers and MSMEs that were struggling with the price of raw jute being capped at Rs 6,500 per quintal for about past 6 months.

With majority of the jute mills being located in West Bengal, maximum pressure came from the State industry and others including Arjun Singh, BJP MP from Bengal.

The Jute Commissioner’s Office (JCO) said in the notification that, “After careful analysis and considering the current market scenario of raw jute availability, the September 30 notification stands withdrawn from May 20.”

This step has been welcomed by the Indian Jute Mills Association, which had claimed there was crisis looming as they were not getting raw jute below Rs 7,000 a quintal.

Due to price cap on jute, several jute mills had shut operations, rendering thousands of workers unemployed.

Over bumper crop projection, raw jute prices have corrected to Rs 6,700 per quintal, down from Rs 7,200 a quintal in the past week. (KNN Bureau)