Production at MSMEs hit as supervisors are left stranded

Managers and supervisors working in MSMEs could not reach their manufacturing units in and around Chennai, for a second day during the complete lockdown, as e-passes they had applied for were either rejected or kept pending on Saturday. As a result, many units had to cut production by over 70-80%, while some had to even close their units as they did not want to operate without managers.

A.N. Sujeesh, president, Ambattur Industrial Estate Manufacturers’ Association, said that many units in the industrial estate had still not got the passes.

“Certain units that had applied for five passes have been given one. But many e-pass applications were rejected and supervisors could not turn up for work. It is difficult to operate without a person in-charge of decision making,” he said. Mr. Sujeesh requested the government to allot at least one or two e-passes for each unit. According to him, of the over 2,400 units in the Ambattur Industrial Estate, less than a hundred operated on Saturday.

“Most MSME units are running without supervisors or a managerial presence/intervention, and it is turning a nightmare for the owners to leave the factory to bottom-line workmen and immediate line in-charges,” said Hariharan Ramamoorthy, national vice-president, Laghu Udyog Bharati- Tamil Nadu. He added, “We request the government to issue atleast two or three car/van passes for each MSME unit.”

Most industrial estates had similar concerns. Those in-charge of the units in the Thirumudivakkam Industrial Estate could not reach work on Friday as well as Saturday, as their e-pass requests were rejected. R. Selvam, secretary of the Thirumudivakkam Industrial Estate Manufacturers’ Association, said, “We had made several plans but could not execute it as supervisors were not around to monitor the workers. We request the State government to look into this and approve the e-pass requests,” he said.

Repeated rejections

R.G. Chakrapani, secretary of the Thirumazhisai Industrial Estate, said that supervisors in his estate faced similar challenges.

“Passes have all been rejected in spite of repeated submissions of applications,” he said. Of the 270 units here, only a handful that are making essentials are functioning. “Workers don’t want to take chances without supervisors. An industry without supervisors and managers cannot run effectively. And if there is any defect in the product made, the cost of rejection will be more than the actual production cost,” Mr. Chakrapani added.

The Kakkalur Industrial Estate Manufacturers’ Association (KIEMA) too had issues obtaining e-passes for managers. Its secretary K. Baskaran said that there were issues in movement of goods. “The police and other patrolling agencies are not allowing the free movement of trucks and other industrial goods carriers,” he said.

Mr. Ramamoorthy also pointed out that many transport vehicles across the Ambattur Industrial Estate, Tirumullaivoyal and Tiruvallur were being withheld or confiscated, and the police were insisting on e-passes, which were not called for in the G.O. “We request the government not to block the movement of vehicles to ensure the smooth functioning of the units,” he said.