Association of Tirupur (DAT) to balance the impact of the steep rise in cost of dyes/chemicals over the past fortnight announced hike in dyeing charges with immediate effect. DAT president S. Nagarajan said that as there has been a 40 percent increase in the raw material costs since April 1, they are actually forced to increase the dyeing charges by 20 percent for dark colours and 15 percent for light colours.

Dyeing unit owners blamed the “cartels of dyes manufacturers/suppliers” for the frequent increases in raw material (ie dyes) prices.

The dyeing unit owners expressed fear that unless the government comes with stern steps to control the prices of raw materials, it would have a cascading effect on the existence of dyeing units.

According to industrialists in the dyeing sector, in a cluster like Tirupur, dyeing units co-exist with the apparel exporters and their business. So if the dyeing charges are hiked, the apparels made from here would become costlier. Due to which the exporters can lose a sizeable share in the price-sensitive global market.

When the overall business comes down, dyeing sector too will have to struggle. So, rising the dyeing charges in tandem with the hike in the costs of dye stuffs is not a solution at all.