Most jute mills in Hooghly district have shut down, citing a shortage of raw jute and a lack of adequate work orders.
The ruling party, however, has alleged that the closures are orchestrated by the Central government and the BJP, timed deliberately ahead of the state elections.
Thousands of workers are employed in jute mills and have been residing in Bengal with their families for decades. Their votes are considered crucial in determining the electoral fortunes of candidates across constituencies, often favouring the ruling party.
A senior Trinamul Congress leader, Annay Chatterjee, who is also the vice-president of the party’s Hooghly-Serampore district unit, said that workers from mills such as India Jute Mill, Rishra Wellington Jute Mill, Dalhousie Jute Mill, Angus Jute Mill and North Brook Jute Mill, many of them originally from Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha, have long settled in the district. Their families are now integrated into Bengal’s social and cultural fabric.
He claimed that most of these workers and their families benefit from welfare schemes introduced by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. According to him, the BJP is aware that their votes largely support the ruling party.
Mr Chatterjee alleged that, in a calculated move, the Centre creates an artificial shortage of raw jute and withholds work orders during election periods, prompting mill owners to shut operations temporarily. He said this pattern has been observed in previous elections as well.
With mills closed, thousands of workers are forced to return to their native villages to take up traditional agricultural work. Their absence during elections, he claimed, affects voter turnout and impacts the ruling party’s vote share.
He further alleged that the Central government is prioritising synthetic alternatives over biodegradable jute products, despite West Bengal producing high-quality raw jute. Mills, he added, often reopen only after election results are declared.
Condemning what he termed “dirty politics”, Mr Chatterjee said such actions deprive workers and their families of their constitutional right to vote.