Farmers' agitation to cause Rs 500 cr economic loss daily to northern states: PHDCCI

Industry body PHDCCI on Friday said it apprehends "severe hit" to trade and industry and loss of employment in the northern states from a lingering farmers' agitation which would result in economic losses of over Rs 500 crore daily.

"A lingering agitation will cause Rs 500 crores economic loss daily and will have an impact on Q4 Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of northern states majorly Punjab, Haryana and Delhi," said Sanjeev Agrawal, President, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The industry body looks forward to an early resolution of the issues from both the government and the farmers, with a common consensus for the welfare of all in the country, he added.

Agrawal stated that the farmers' agitation is severely impacting the businesses of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and parts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan as raw materials of such units are procured largely from other states to execute production processes and to meet up demand of the consumers.

The major hit will be on the MSMEs in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

"The combined GSDP of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi is estimated at Rs 27 lakh crore in 2022-23 at current prices. There are around 34 lakh MSMEs in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi which employ about 70 lakh workers in their respective factories," said Agrawal.

The economic activities such as the food processing, cotton textiles, garments, automobile, farm machinery, information technology, trading, tourism, hospitality and transport will be severely impacted by the continuous farm agitation with the disrupted supplies of many raw materials to the industry, he observed.