Karimnagar, February 17: Sircilla textile town bandh, called by powerloom weavers on Wednesday protesting imposition of electricity FSA (Fuel surcharge adjustments) on power looms, was near total and peaceful.
All the 33,000 and odd powerlooms stopped production of fabric on the looms. Traders also observed bandh in support of the weavers.
Small-scale industry
The weavers had been observing relay hunger strike for the last 13 days demanding exemption for the powerloom sector from the FSA charges by considering their trade as a small-scale industry.
When the crisis was loomed in the Sircilla textile town and weavers died of starvation in 2001, the government had announced 50 per cent power subsidy to the powerloom sector. Since then, the government had been continuing the power subsidy to bail out the weavers from crisis. However, freshly, the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) had issued instructions for collection of FSA charges from the powerlooms also for last year.
The powerloom weavers appealed to the government to exempt their sector from FSA charges as the production cost had increased considerably and they were not getting the wages.
They said that the electricity authorities were collecting anywhere from Rs. 0.84 paise per unit to Rs. 0.90 paise per unit from the powerloom weavers.
Subsidy of no use
“What is the use of giving 50 per cent power subsidy and again burdening the weavers by imposing FSA? The powerloom sector is not a major industry and it is only a small-scale industry providing employment to weavers,” the weavers stated and urged the government to exempt their sector from FSA charges and avoid crisis in future.
–Agencies