| According to the Federation of Paper Traders' Association of India Vice-President Balgopal Trivedi, the total domestic demand for paper stood at 7.2 million tonnes whereas the production was only 6.7 million tonnes. |
| The gap between consumption and production has increased over a period of time. It is estimated that this gap may widen if adequate steps are not taken both by the industry and the government to spur the growth of the sector, he said. |
| According to Trivedi, paper imports have surged by over 19 per cent a year since 2001-02. It rose to 22 per cent during the period from April 2006 to January 2007. Availability of raw materials has become a contentious issue for both wood-based paper manufacturers and waste paper-based manufacturers. |
| According to the paper traders, growth sustainability of the industry at 9-10 per cent was becoming a major challenge due to shortage of the main raw materials such as wood or waste paper. |
| This makes it difficult to compete against Brazil, Chile and Indonesia. The industry was also adversely affected due to the government's policy of not using wood from forests for commercial use. |
| The government also does not allow industrial plantation on degraded forest lands. "The government should allow rotation plantation system so that the industry has a supply of quality raw material," he said. |
| Such type of industrial plantation was allowed on degraded forest lands in countries like Malaysia and Thailand, he said. The paper industry was also crippled by the difference in the cost of production. |
| Countries like Brazil, Chile and Indonesia are low cost producers of pulp and paper mainly because of their large-scale units and high-tech man-made plantations of pulpwood species, he said. |
| He said the industry had also been advocating for a technology upgradation fund for handling and processing agro residue fibre in small and medium scale industries. |
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