Now, ‘Made in India’ labels added to PPE kits, masks

LUDHIANA :As the anti-China sentiment is gaining momentum among consumers, makers of face masks and personal protective equipment (PPE) kits in Ludhiana — the biggest manufacturer of the same in the country — are ensuring to attach ‘Made in India’ tags to their products.

Stating that Chinese products were not be being accepted by customers, the mask makers said the latter were seeking only indigenous stuff these days.

Ludhiana district chemists’ association chairperson Manjit Singh said in the prevailing scenario, no customer wants to buy Chinese items and preferred locally-made masks and PPEs.

“We are receiving orders for locally-made N-95 masks from hospitals. There are reasons for it. First, the current border tension between Indian and China and secondly the poor-quality material supplied by Chinese firms. China has used India for dumping its medical equipment. Majority of its N-95 masks and PPE kits were of poor quality and did not meet the standards,” said Manjit.

Similarly, PPE and N-95 mask manufacturer Avneesh Aggarwal said Ludhiana industry has both the potential and expertise to manufacture better quality face masks and PPE kits.

The need to put a barcode, lot number and place of manufacturing was felt as many people were importing products from China and selling them in the market, said Avneesh Aggarwal.

“But following the killing of our soldiers, people started boycotting Chinese goods. Now, they seek the mention of place of manufacture. So, we decided to highlight our products with ‘Made in India’ tags,” he added.

Another manufacturer Ujjwal Miglani said, “Not only customers, but the labourers working in our factory do not want to use any product made in China. This anti-China sentiment is proving to be blessing in disguise and will give push the MSME industry of the city.”

FICO textile division head Ajit Lakra said, “Over the years, we have greatly depended on China in terms of machinery. While software could be replaced overnight, glitches in machinery cannot be fixed without technical support. So, the government should encourage subsidised technology exchange with countries like Taiwan, Korea and Japan in order to eliminate dependence on China.”