Cricket bat industry bestows big opportunity
NewsR Staff
When Virat Kolhi will hammers the ball out of the boundary with his helicopter shot, youths Anantnag district of Kashmir will have reason to cheer.
For, the cricket legends have been using the bats crafted in the unit over the years.
With migrant labourers returning to their home states after the outbreak of pandemic, the local Kashmiri youths have golden chance to fill the space. Kashmir willow bats are popular across the world for their quality and durability. Moreover, Kashmir willow is less valuable than the English willow.
However, the cost advantage of the Kashmiri bats ensure that the region remains the second largest exporter of cricket bats in the world, right behind the UK, where the sport was born. The willow used to make these bats was brought in by the British during the 1920s. Some of the districts where these bats are made in Kashmir are Anantnag, Baramula, and Pahalgam.
A large number of youths engaged in the work were from Bihar and other states. Following Covid-19, they had returned to their native places and in no mood to return despite the unit owners offering air tickets. They wanted to start their own bat manufacturing unit in Bihar.
A delegation of top officials led by Director Industries and Commerce (I&C) recently visited the cricket bat manufacturing industrial zone and held discussion with the manufacturers to expand the business and address their problems. The manufacturers informed that about 1.5 million finished cricket bats were manufactured annually in the region and sold in various parts of country.
