Union Budget 2022-23: Ludhiana cycle industry dejected again

Even as Budget 2022 evoked a mixed reaction from all quarters, small scale industry in Ludhiana was a disappointed lot with no fresh incentives announced for the bicycle sector which has been going through tough times due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

With more than 50,000 cycles manufactured every day here, Ludhiana is considered the hub of bicycle manufacturing in India. According to statistics, Ludhiana produces over 1.5 crore bicycles per annum with the support of around 4,000 small and medium ancillary units here.

United Cycle Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA) president DS Chawla said, “There is nothing for us in the budget. Despite being the cycle hub of the country, we are still dependent on China for certain cycle parts used in high-end cycles but nothing is being done to promote domestic production. We needed a technology innovation fund but that was not provided,” he said.

Harpal Singh Bhamber, head, FICO (Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisation)’s bicycle division, said no special package for the bicycle industry has been introduced even when India is the second largest manufacturer of bicycles in the world, after China. “The bicycle sector needs special attention from the government to flourish,” he said.

Manjinder Singh Sachdeva, senior vice president, FICO, said the credit link capital subsidy scheme has not been reintroduced, let apart increasing its limit. “The credit link capital subsidy scheme should have been made permanent as it is the only scheme for the technological upgrade of the MSME industry,” he said.

Moreover, the GST on steel raw material has not been reduced to 12% as steel is being taxed at 18%, but the anomaly is that finished products of the steel in industry are being taxed at 12%, which is also resulting in GST refunds being stuck at the government’s end. The GST on steel should have been rationalised and reduced to 12 %, he said.

Education sector gets thumbs up

Monica Malhotra Kandhari, managing director, MBD Group, said, “The Union Budget 2022-2023 has taken care of the much-needed initiatives for the education sector which has been reeling through a rough phase due to the pandemic-led disruption. The announcement of a TV channel programme of PM eVIDYA which will be expanded from 12 to 200 TV channels will enable all states to provide supplementary education in regional languages for Classes 1 to 12. Also, the proposed launch of the Digital DESH e-portal will immensely help in the skilling, up-skilling and re-skilling of our youth which is indispensable at this hour.”