Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday allowed tiny/cottage industries in non-containment mixed-use areas of Ludhiana to immediately resume operations, in order to support the opening of bigger industries that are dependent on the small ones for components, etc. The CM said that several requests had been received from industry associations for allowing opening of industries in mixed land-use areas, with access control in non-containment zones of the Ludhiana district, subject to adherence to Covid-19 guidelines. Industry Minister Sunder Sham Arora had said first small units should be allowed to open to enable the bigger industries to start operations, he added.
Ludhiana is an industrial city having approximately 95,000 MSMEs, offering employment to more than 10 lakh skilled and non-skilled industrial workers. The Chief Minister observed that despite easing of restrictions, only 6,900 of the industries in the city have so far resumed activities. Many of the industries are not able to start their works as they are dependent on various small and tiny cottage industries which provide them components etc and most of these small/tiny/cottage industries are located in mixed land use areas as per notified Master Plan, pointed out the Chief Minister.