Indian Agro & Recycled Paper Mills Association (IARPMA) has written to the commerce ministry alleging cartelisation by waste paper suppliers to increase prices. IARPMA has asked the commerce ministry to intervene in the matter and crack down on illegal hoarding of waste paper stocking centres.
According to the association, the paper industry is facing an unprecedented crisis as the prices of waste paper, the key raw material for water paper, has doubled over the last six months.
“In order to protect the industry and the employment of millions of people, majority of them located in rural areas, we solicit your intervention to kindly intercede in the present issue of waste paper price hike by the waste paper suppliers…The malpractice by creating artificial scarcity of waste paper availability in the country must be put on hold to ease the undue pressure on the paper manufacturers,” IARPMA said in the letter.
IARPMA said from a pre-COVID price range of Rs 10-13 per kg, the waste paper prices have increased to Rs 22-24 per kg impacting the industry adversely.
The industry body has attributed the unexpected increase in waste paper prices to unfair practices of hoarding and cartelisation by waste paper suppliers.
“Certain waste paper suppliers are controlling the price and availability of waste paper and as a result there is no option for the Paper mills, but to cut their paper production as per the raw material availability and stock inventory”, said Pramod Agarwal, President IARPMA.
IARPMA said waste paper based paper mills account for nearly 17 million tonnes of the total 25 million tonnes of paper produced annually in the country.
Agarwal said while the market price for collection of waste paper from households continues to range between Rs 10-13 per kg, the waste paper suppliers have escalated the prices for supplies to paper mills through illegal hoarding.