Violence returns to WB jute industry, manager assaulted

Violence returned to the West Bengal jute industry. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Violence returned to the West Bengal jute industry on Saturday (June 14, 2025) after a senior official of the Auckland Jute mill, located in the State’s North 24-Parganas, was assaulted. The management of the Jute mill put a suspension of work notice, putting at stake the livelihood of around 4,000 workers.

Sankar Debnath, the official of the jute mill, was allegedly assaulted by a group of workers. Mr. Debnath was hospitalised after the assault. The attack, which took place outside the mill premises, was caught on the closed-circuit television cameras. According to reports, tension was brewing between a section of workers and the management of the jute mill located under Jagatdal police station for past few days which resulted into the violence.

Former Barrackpore MP and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arjun Singh accused the Trinamool Congress for the violence and suspension of work.

“An internal rift is going on among the TMC backed criminals over the share of the extortion money. Because of the internal feud of TMC criminals, a Bengali Hindu Sankar Tarafdar was attacked in the Mill premises by the criminals belonging to the VOTE BANK of@MamataOfficial. The mill has been closed and about 4,000 labourers are jobless now,” Mr. Singh said on social media. The BJP leader also added that hundreds of Bengal Global Business Summits ( annual event of WB govt to attract fresh investment to the State) will bear no fruit if the law and order remains like this where the goons rule, not the law.

Jute mills which are located on the banks of Hooghly around Kolkata around Kolkata have been source of employment of workers for almost over a century. Occasionally the industry struggles with closures and suspension of work. About 10 years ago, the CEO of Northbrook jute mills in Hooghly’s Bhadreswar was beaten to death by agitating workers.

West Bengal still remains the highest producer of jute in the country. In 2023-24 West Bengal registered a yield of 2883.20 per hectare and 7865.70 in bales. The Jute Corporation of India (JCI) has increased the minimum selling price (MSP) of jute from ₹5,335 to ₹5,650 per quintal for crop year 2025-26 to discourage distress sales by farmers.