The well known ceramic industry of Saurashtra is passing through a bad phase due to an imposition of 16 per cent central excise duty in the recent Union Budget.
Earlier the industry availed of a central excise exemption limit of upto Rs 1 crore which has now been withdrawn.
More then 500 units at Morbi, Wankaner, Thangadh and other places in Saurashtra are in dire straits, and nearly 80 per cent of them have already closed down.
More From This Section
Nearly 25,000 workers of the industry are facing uncertain future. The units at Morbi, having a monthly turnover of around Rs 200 crore, employs more then 20,000 workers.
There is a very high demand for Morbi glazed tiles in Sri Lanka and the Arabian countries. Morbi has more then 100 glazed tiles units, 80 units of sanitaryware and 200 units of roofing tiles.
Raw materials are procured from Kutch and Bikaner and powder used in the industry comes from Pune and Udaipur. Fuel gas is supplied from Porbandar.
Besides Morbi, which is the biggest centre for the industry, Wankaner and Thangadh in the region have 50 and 100 units, respectively. The recent transport strike affected the industry adversely.