Nitin Gadkari through video conference inaugurated a major Bamboo Agarbatti Stick making unit named “Keshari Bio Products LLP” at Bajali district in Assam.
The unit is a major step in the direction of “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” and an apt example of “Waste to Wealth” as apart from making Agarbatti sticks, it utilizes a huge quantity of waste bamboo into making bio-fuel and various other products.
Set up at a cost of Rs 10 crore, the Agarbatti stick unit will provide direct employment to 350 people while also creating over 300 indirect employment.
Setting up of these units in Assam assumes great significance in wake of the Modi government’s decision of restriction on import of raw agarbatti from China and Vietnam and also a hike in import duty on round bamboo sticks for agarbatti.
At present, the consumption of incense sticks in India is pegged at a whopping 1490 tons per day but only 760 tons per day is locally produced. Hence, the huge gap between the demand and supply resulted in heavy import of raw agarbatti.