Examine the factors responsible for the location of Jute industry around the World.

Jute fibre is one of the cheapest and coarsest, and its main use is as a packaging material for agricultural and industrial products.  Important products of jute are gunny bags, hessians, cordage and carpets.  As a packing material, jute is very cheap, strong and durable.

Locational Aspects

• Jute industry is now found in many countries of the world including India, Bangladesh, Germany, UK, France, and Italy.
• India has the undisputed lead­ership in this industry, while Bangladesh is also an important producer and is the largest producer of raw jute. More than 95% of the world’s raw jute comes from the Brahmaputra Valley and the lower Gangetic Delta of India and Bangladesh and over three-fourths of the manufacturing capacity is located in this jute growing area.
• The most impor­tant area of India with maximum concentration of jute mills is the Hooghly Basin in West Bengal. Other Indian states where jute mills are located include Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Assam.
• Most of the jute mills of Bangladesh are located in Chittagong, Naryanganj, Khulna, Chandpur, Ghorashal, Choumohini and Narsindhi. Availability of raw material, cheap labour, and unique natural waterways are the chief advantages enjoyed by the jute mills in Bangladesh.
• The industry in both India and Bangladesh has developed in the areas where not only the raw material is available but also have a large supply of cheap manpower and means of trans port-chiefly the water transport. The mills are ideally located to export their product to the interna­tional market.
• Jute is a pure raw material and it can be carried over long distances. As a consequence, industries have developed in many countries in Europe, espe­cially in UK, Germany and Italy. These industries have developed taking advantage of local markets. European countries are engaged mainly in making finer goods rather than coarse packing materials.

In the world market, India and Bangladesh are the only two countries exporting sizeable quantities of jute products. India exports more jute goods, whereas Bangladesh is the leading exporter of raw jute. The most important buyers of jute goods in the world market are US, Russia, Australia, Canada, Argentina, Cuba, Indonesia, UK and Myanmar.

Topics: GS-I: Factors Responsible for the Location of Industries in Various Parts of World