CHENNAI: The leather industry is hopeful of the Centre agreeing to its plea to include units that have modernised since May 2002 to avail themselves of the benefits under the Rs. 290-crore Integrated Development of Leather Sector scheme.

The modernisation and technology upgradation scheme of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, under the Union Commerce and Industry Ministry, has fixed November 2005 as the timeframe from which it would come into force.

Noting that it should be made applicable from the beginning of the tenth five year plan period, Council for Leather Exports chairman M. Rafeeque Ahmed said the plea was made at the recent meeting convened by the Prime Minister's Office.

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath, who was present at the meeting, agreed to the suggestion, he added.

Job creation

The industry also urged the Centre to provide financial assistance to units putting up systems to comply with the zero liquid discharge (ZLD) norms, up to 75 per cent of the cost.

Speaking to The Hindu on the sidelines of the Leather Research Industry Get Together (LERIG) here on Saturday, Mr. Ahmed said the meeting of the Prime Minister, with leaders of six industries, was essentially on job creation.

These measures would help the leather industry, which planned to create one million new jobs in the next five years.

Export target

At the LERIG inauguration, a member of CLRI's research council M.M. Hashim said unless the "pollution problems" were sorted out the export targets set for the industry would be difficult to achieve.

While 13 large tanneries in Tamil Nadu have complied with ZLD norm, by setting up reverse osmosis system, finance was proving to be a constraint for the smaller ones.

They were looking for funding support from the Centre.

The industry in the State had spent nearly Rs.150 crores on complying with the norm.

Landfills

All the tanneries in Tamil Nadu were also investing Rs. 25 crores for setting up secured landfills by June, he told the meeting in which G. Thyagarajan, chairman of the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee on hazardous wastes, was present.

Delivering the B.M. Das (CLRI's founder director) oration lecture, Darlie O. Koshy, executive director of the National Institute of Design, said innovation was going to be the key for revival and growth of the leather industry.

New products of combination materials need to be looked at for tapping India's huge mass markets and for capturing the attention of the youth.

Service centres

Since the customer care for leather products is "very poor," service centres ought to be established by the industry if the leather culture was to permeate.

On innovation, Dr. Koshy said: "Without breakthrough innovations there cannot be IPR (intellectual property rights). Without IPR, we will remain a copycat and tailor to the West." The industry must therefore transform through the stages of mass production to original design creation and original brand creation.

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