In order to restrict the declining sales of bicycles in Punjab, United Cycle and Part Manufacturers’ Association (UCPMA) has decided to go for promotion of cycle industry by organising cycle rallies.
Sharing details about the project, D S Chawla, President, UCPMA, one of Asia’s largest bicycle part manufacturers’ association, said that in coming year they were planning to organise 5-6 awareness rallies.
The rallies would be organised in Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala and Chandigarh. The aim of the rally is to sensitise people towards use of bicycles and eventually helping the bicycle industry to grow.
As per rough estimates, the bicycle industry in India is pegged at Rs 5,000 crores, with Ludhiana comprising 90 per cent of the total bicycle industry of India.
Chawlasaid due to slack demand, most of the units were operating at 50 per cent to 55 per cent of their capacities.
He added that labour would have gone redundant had there been an adequate supply of labour. “Due to opportunities in infrastructure projects executed across India, the availability of migrant labour has been hit in Punjab. So despite fall in production, lay offs were not made.”
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The cycle industry has been registering a flat growth for the last two years and a holistic approach was needed to streamline the units, he felt.
“Apart from being non polluting vehicle, bicycle use could also help reducing the traffic chaos in cities, apart from making people healthier,” Chawla said. He added that to organise the cycle rallies , UCPMA would be soliciting the help of Punjab government as well. “Although we are not seeking any monetary help, we are seeking administrative help from the government,” he said