Textile strike enters second day; Thousands rendered jobless

Karur, Tamil Nadu, Apr 3 (UNI) The livelihoods of thousands of daily wage workers of the Karur textile industry were affected as the indefinite strike by the Dyeing and Bleaching units entered the second day today.

As many as 489 dyeing and bleaching units in Karur district resorted to an indefinite ''Stop Production' agitation since yesterday, to press their core demand of removing discrimination and disparity in the application of Pollution Control norms across the State uniformly and also to highlight the plight of 20 units, which Madras High Court has ordered to close due to the misrepresentation of facts by the Tamilnadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB).

The Rs 3,000 crore turnover business in the textile town of Karur came to a grinding halt in the wake of the indefinite strike by the textile units.

The dyeing and bleaching units were linked to eight Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPS) and 96 individual Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPS) situated around Karur.

The Karur CETPS and ETPS Federation has alleged that the strict administration of pollution control norms on Karur units was not followed in the dyeing and bleaching units at Erode, Coimbatore, Salem, Madurai and Namakkal Districts that gave cost advantage to the textile industry in these districts.

Meanwhile, the Karur Textile Forum, a confederation of various textile-related industries has called for a day's strike today in Karur to express their support to the agitating dyeing and bleaching units.

All the textile-related manufacturing units downed their shutters in response to the strike call.

UNI