NAMAKKAL: Power loom units at Rasipuram here stopped operations on Friday citing rising yarn prices.
Rasipuram and surrounding villages including Vennandur are known for towel production. More than 30,000 workers are engaged by 7,000-odd power loom units in the region.
While 50kg yarn was sold for Rs 8,500 a few months ago, it is now sold for Rs 12,500, said Kumaran Kalaivanan, general secretary of the Salem Zonal Power Loom Workers Association. “The price hike has directly affected cost of production. Hike of Rs 4,500 per 50kg will push towel prices by Rs 15,” he told TOI.
Power loom unit owners said that clients who had given orders weeks ago are hesitating to bear the additional cost. “A towel that was quoted for Rs 10 at the time of the order, now cost Rs 25 due to yarn price hike. Clients refuse to give the hiked price even after we showed yarn procurement bills,” Kalaivanan said. “Unit owners have been facing huge losses for the last three months.”
Residents urged the department to capture the leopard after it attacked four goats owned by a farmer at Gandhi Nagar and a pet dog at Mattapparai on January 20.
The leopard was first spotted in Madukkarai region in 2019. After it killed two goats of a farmer at Vinayagar Kovil Street in July 2020, forest department personnel placed a cage and two camera traps to track its movement. But the big cat, between five to six years of age, remained elusive.
It returned to the area a month ago and was spotted at residential areas including Gandhi Nagar, Mavuthampathy, Tamilannai street, Mattapparai and Vinayagar Kovil street that are close to the reserved forest, a forest department official said.
Photo for representative purpose only
COIMBATORE: Private hospitals in the district will be able to collect Covid-19 vaccine vials from the storage unit here on Sunday and begin administration on Monday.
This comes after health minister Dr C Vijayabaskar announced on Friday that private hospitals with more than 150 health workers could administer the vaccine vials on their premises itself.
Around 5pm on Saturday, the public health and medical services department got a written communication, asking it start handing over Covishield vials to the private hospitals with more than 150 health workers.
Dr G Ramesh Kumar, deputy director of public health, said, “We have around 15 to 20 hospitals in that category in the district. We will be able to hand over the vaccines on Sunday afternoon based on the number of health workers they have registered.”
COIMBATORE: The third leased parcel cargo express train of the Salem division was flagged off from Vanjipalayam in Tirupur on Saturday.
The train, leased to Viskan Logistics Services Private Limited, has 15 wagons that can carry 353 tonnes of commodities. It will leave Vanjipalayam at 8.30pm every Saturday and reach New Guwahati station in Assam at 8pm on Tuesday. It will stop at Erode, Vijayawada Junction, Khurdha road, Sankrail Goods Terminal Yard (Howrah) and at New Jalpaiguri Jn for loading and unloading goods. The train will leave Guwahati at 8.30pm on every Thursday and reach Vanjipalayam at 12.30am on Monday.
The other leased parcel cargo express trains began operation between Coimbatore North and Patel Nagar last August and between Coimbatore North and Rajkot on January 8. The trains have been leased for a period of six years, during which they will earn the division Rs 66 crore.