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Colour manufacturers busy as Holi nears
by Devendra Varshnay

         Hathras (UP): With 'Holi' round the corner, the colour-manufacturing units at Hathras in Uttar Pradesh are working overtime to meet the huge demand for colours from many parts of the country. Workers at Hathras colour manufacturing industry say that not only during Holi, but during other festivals also, colour is exported to other states from the town. Laxman Singh, an owner of a colour-making unit said that the aim is to churn out new quality products every year ahead of Holi to combat the increasingly tough competition. "Hathras is famous throughout India for its colour business. People trust the quality of colours that we make. But this year, there are some problems. We are facing a lot of competition. Many units have come up. The economic slowdown is also hurting our business," said Singh. People involved in the business say that the raw material for making the coloured powder is mixed with ingredients like starch and topia. Colour pigment and water is also added and the mixture is then dried and ground into powdery form. This ground mixture is again dried with random quality checks. Later, perfumes and scents are added to lend an attractive fragrance. All the three ingredients, topia, starch and corn flour are herbal products. Colour manufacturers said that China had made a failed attempted to capture a part of the Indian colours market two years ago with cheaper and low quality products. " China had tried to enter this colour business. It had tried to capture our market. Two years back, we thought, we would lose our business to China , but then the quality of its products is not good, and people had many complaints. Now, once again people are coming back to us despite the fact that the Chinese products are cheap," said Vinod Mittal, another colour manufacturer. The owners of colour-making units reveal that the turnover prior to Holi is almost a six digit figure. Industry experts say that the multi-million Holi colour industry grows at the rate of 15 per cent per annum. Hathras has more than two dozens small and big industrial units catering to the nationwide demand while providing employment to hundreds of persons in the region.
-Feb 26, 2009

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