The textiles and jute ministry has applied to the finance ministry for allocating Tk 800 crore in loan assistance so that it can pay workers and employees at the state-owned jute mills the allowances that have remained due for years.According to the jute ministry letter, the Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation woes Tk 773.93 crore in gratuity, provident fund and dearness allowance to the workers and employees of the jute mills under its jurisdiction.Of the total dues, Tk 260.68 crore is in gratuity, Tk 476.11 crore in provident fund and Tk 37.14 crore in dearness allowance.The BJMC data showed that there were 70,000 workers and 5,500 employees at 26 mills including three non-jute mills under the corporation across the country.The jute ministry in its letter said the BJMC is the largest producer and exporters of jute goods in the country but the corporation cannot pay the gratuity, provident fund, dearness allowance and other dues to the workers in time from its income.The non-payment of the dues has created resentment among the workers and employees against the authorities and the representatives of workers and employees are mounting pressure on the BJMC to clear their dues, the ministry said.According to the ministry letter, the BJMC apprehends that the workers might stage demonstration demanding their overdue allowances.Considering the situation the jute ministry requested the finance ministry to immediately allocate Tk 800 crore in loan in favour of the BJMC to pay the dues of the workers and employees.A jute ministry official said that they had sent the letter to the finance ministry last week and were yet to get any response.He hoped that the finance ministry would allocate the amount to the corporation.According to the BJMC statistics, the state-owned jute mills produce 1.46 lakh tonnes of jute goods per year and export 96,523 tonnes.Of the 26 BJMC mills, seven are located in Dhaka zone, 10 in Chittagong zone and nine in Khulna zone.
