16th April 2014

Courtesy: The Times of India

24-hour general strike impacts normal life in Sivakasi

The buzzing Sivakasi town in Virudhunagar district came to a standstill on Tuesday as the 24-hour general strike called by the associations came into force. Altogether, 25 associations in Sivakasi including those belonging to the plastic bag manufacturers, vegetable vendors, general merchants, accountants, bus drivers and tax payers participated in the strike extending their support to the fireworks industry which went on an indefinite lockout from April 5.

With its unique work culture, Sivakasi industries never went on a known strike till last year when the workers struck work in support of their owners. A Kartheeswaran (52) from Sivakasi said the strike was a great success with most of the commercial establishments shutting their shops. "Fireworks industry is the backbone of the region and employs most of the people. The entire economy will come to a standstill if the industry is crippled," he said.

The genesis of fireworks industry is coupled with match industries when two enterprising businessmen from Sivakasi learnt the nuances of match-making and fireworks in 1923 and started the industry. Over the period, the industry grew into 700 more fireworks units employing as many as three lakh people, the biggest in the region where agriculture failed in the beginning of the 20th century.

A Marirajan, president of Master Printers Association in Sivakasi said that they took part in the strike in support of the fireworks industry. "Most of the industries in Sivakasi were started to support matches and fireworks and they are interwoven with each other. If firework units take a hit, it will cause ripple effect in every industry of Sivakasi," he explained. For instance, the printing industry in Sivakasi that has earned nationwide reputation for its diaries and calendars depends on fireworks industry printing labels for the fireworks, he pointed out.

The fireworks manufacturers meanwhile staged a day-long hunger strike on the TANFAMA office premises condemning the fee hike and import of Chinese fireworks.

G Athipathi of Aiyan fireworks said the government should clarify its stand on Chinese fireworks. "The industry here is not allowed to use chloride in manufacturing which is an environmentally safe practice. We use nitrates in its place which inflates the manufacturing cost but Chinese use chloride. Hence, there is no level playing grounds for us if the Chinese fireworks allowed to be imported," he said.

The manufacturers have called for a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the future course of action.