Dr. Siba Prasad Mishra
September 22
The government of Odisha will deposit 115 crores for Orissa Textile Mills (OTM), Choudwar within 30 days with the liquidator, as per the direction of Honourable Justice Arabinda Sinha, Odisha High Court. This is the last quantum of the dues to clear all liabilities of OTM.
With this clearance, OTM will be a history, which was started in 1946. OTM was a branded and famous textile mill, created by the pride of Odisha, the late Biju Pattnaik. Since its inception, it has had its own brand in home textiles and garnered several awards for its quality production.
Home textiles are fabrics and clothes used specifically for furnishing a residence. Some examples are bedsheets, bedspreads, Bath towels, door and window screens, kitchen towels, and other items present inside the home. The materials and design of each are defined by the functional and aesthetic uses of each.
During its working condition, OTM was competing with Bombay Dyeing but specialty of OTM was its pure, stronger and cheaper pure cotton home textile products. It was specialized in light colours, specialized and pleasant prints. Owing to this, it has market throughout India.
The credit goes for sophisticated and modern machinery, the only modern industry in Eastern sector of India. During that time, everyone in other places, used to be surprised when they used to hear that OTM have modern Picanol auto looms, Italy, Schlafhorst autocone winder, Germany and Scharer pirn winder. Switzerland. This machinery then procured from top level textile machinery manufacturing companies of the world.
This was just its weaving department. Similarly, in its spinning department, it has modern spinning machineries from Rieter, Switzerland with a special combing section. In addition to its modern machinery, there was a quality control laboratory to ensure quality from fibre to fabric.
At present these home textile products has more demands and growing with leaps and bounds. It is one of the most profitable business segments in the global textile industry. Indian home textile products create foreign export. Indian home textile had contributed a significant share of the global home textile market.
India is also one of the top suppliers for the world’s biggest home textile consuming market, being the US. Traditional craftsmanship along with its distinctive appeal is being effectively used for producing value-added home textile items, making the lives more pleasant.
The growth in the Indian home textiles is because of growing household income, increasing population, rising income levels, increase in organized retail, and growth of end-use sectors like housing, hospitality, healthcare.
If this is the present global scenario, what Odisha lost because of absence of OTM. It could have been a branded global home textile product with Odisha tag. It could have been the reputation of Odisha as a hub of Home Textile product in global world. It could have been losing the advantage of eastern region as the most modern textile mill.
Of course, everyone is now highlighting losing of the employment, both directly and indirectly. Above all, can we have another OTM with all modern machinery and market in Odisha with better product quality for export. It is simply an imaginary thought. The workers might get their employment in anywhere. The city can be developed to an industrial city but collection of all modern and automatic machinery will be at least beyond any dream.
This industry was created by late Biju Pattanaik and its Executive Director was Mr. Pratap Singh. Perhaps no other leader created that much dream for Odisha in Industrial front like Biju Pattanaik. Had OTM would be there without Government control, it would be 76 years old and might be branched out something bigger which none can dream today in this globalized world.
President, TAI Odisha Unit,
