Bicycle manufacturers in Ludhiana lament increasing prices of iron and steel

Ludhiana (Punjab) [India], August 30 : Bicycle manufacturers in Ludhiana on Sunday lamented the increasing prices of steel and iron and urged the government to set up a regulatory commission to fix their prices.
Speaking to ANI, Avtar Singh Bhogal, owner of Bhogal Cycles in Ludhiana said that the cycle rates have increased by Rs 800 and might increase further if the price of the raw material witnesses another surge.
"The rates of iron keep on fluctuating. There is no certainty regarding the prices. It might increase one day and decrease the other day. This makes it very difficult for the manufacturers to decide a price for the cycles," said Bhogal.
"We have urged the government to set up a regulatory commission that fixes the price of the iron for at least six months. This way we can decide a price for our products," he added.
Bhogal also complained about the increase in prices of diesel and electricity and said that it was getting very difficult for the manufacturers to run a factory.
Another cycle manufacturer and owner of Nova cycles in Ludhiana, Harminder Singh Pahwa, said that the price of steel that was Rs 50,000 per tonne in September last year has gone up to Rs 80,000 now.
"The rates have been increasing rapidly. We booked orders at older prices but received the raw materials at an increased price. We had to suffer losses due to such a sudden increase," stated Pahwa.
He further added that the sales of cycles had already decreased by 25 to 40 per cent this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic and floods and the losses incurred due to increasing prices of steel have further affected the industry.