July 18, 2019
Five lakh employment opportunities in Calcutta Leather Complex
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today inaugurated a project and laid the foundation stones of several others at the Calcutta Leather Complex (CLC) in Bantala. These projects will lead to a big rise in employment opportunities (both direct and indirect combined), from the current 2 lakh to 5 lakh, in the near future.
She formally allotted 70 acres for 187 new tanneries from Kolkata, Kanpur and Chennai, taking the total number of tanneries that are operational or to become so in the near future, at CLC, to close to more than 790. This is the first phase.
In the second phase, the plan is to hand over plots to 250 leather goods units, according to a senior government official.
Out of the 187 tannery companies being allotted plots, 28 are big category, 97 are medium category and 62 are small category companies. Among these, 29 are from Kanpur, two from Chennai and 156 from Kolkata.
She also handed over no objection certificates (NOC) to many tannery and leather goods units, so that they can become operational. There were 220 tannery units and 50 leather goods units which had already been allotted plots but did not get NOCs as they did not have infrastructure for effluent discharge.
It needs to be mentioned in this connection that the State Government has decided to instal four combined effluent treatment and sewage treatment plants to cater to the new as well as the old units.
Presently there are 385 tannery units and 40 leather goods units that are operational at Bantala.
The chief minister inaugurated three facilities at CFC:
- Leather Goods Park (where leather goods units will be set up, with a substantial focus on export)
- Tanning Training Services Centre (with NABL-accredited testing lab, design centre, footwear lab, etc. to train tannery and leather goods sector employees, through the Government Leather Teach College)
- Handed over six buses for transporting workers within CLC
Mamata Banerjee also laid the foundation stones of the following:
- Footwear Park (situated on 60 acres, to house more than 150 export-focussed units)
Common Facility Centre (CFC) for leather goods manufacturers (to support them with the latest technology, in order to enhance capacity for export and domestic units) - Micro Tanners’ Hub (on 10 acres, to provide ready-t-use space for tanners for direct employment)
- Eco-friendly CFC for leather scrap burners (on 5 acres, to help them manufacture leather cards and boards)
- 7th and 8th common effluent treatment plants (CETP) (on 5 acres, to cater to the new tanneries)
- Secured landfill sites for solid waste management (on 36 acres)
- Sewage Treatment Plant (one central STP, covering 50 acres, for environment-friendly treatment of sewage and other waster water)
Dr Amit Mitra, the Finance, Industry and Commerce, and Information Technology and e-Governance Minister, had recently said that the government is spending Rs 540 crore for infrastructural development at CLC in order to turn the leather hub into the world’s largest one.
Already several big companies from other States have set up their units at CLC, and several more were handed over plots at the programme today. They are making a beeline for CLC because of the government’s providing of all necessary infrastructure and of following the latest rules and regulations, including environmental standards.
With all the projects announced today, the turnover at Calcutta Leather Complex is expected to climb from the present Rs 13,000 crore to Rs 27,000 crore in the next few years, according to the official mentioned earlier, and the export figure is expected to touch Rs 35,000 crore.
