This surge in imports has emerged as a significant challenge for the domestic paper industry
| Photo Credit:
alizadelgun
The Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) has voiced concern over the continued rise in paper and paperboard imports, which in FY25 alone saw a 33 per cent jump in volume from China. Imports from China now account for 27 per cent with ASEAN not too far behind at 20 per cent of the total imports. In value terms, the figure touched nearly ₹15,000 crore in FY25.
The latest data by the Commerce Department shows that paper and paperboard imports have doubled over the past four years, reaching a record 2.05 million tonnes in FY25 compared to 1.08 million tonnes in FY21. This surge has emerged as a significant challenge for the domestic paper industry, undermining its growth potential and threatening investments in capacity expansion.
In the four-year period since FY21, imports into India have grown at a CAGR of over 17 per cent in volume terms, one of the steepest increases amongst major commodities. Imports from China have increased at a CAGR of over 39 per cent, and from ASEAN at over 30 per cent. Imports of coated paper and paperboard, and uncoated writing and printing paper have more than doubled in volume terms.
Pawan Agarwal, President, IPMA, said, “The relentless surge in paper imports is a matter of grave concern for the domestic paper industry, which has invested substantially in capacity building and sustainability initiatives. The influx of predatory imports, especially from countries like China and Indonesia, has been eroding the competitiveness of the domestic manufacturers, leading to underutilisation of installed capacities.”
“Apart from the overall negative impact of cheap imports on the domestic paper industry, it is making most small and medium paper mills in India commercially unviable. According to the Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), out of over 850-900 paper mills in the country, only 550 are currently operational. This is a serious setback to the sector, which has traditionally supported a large number of rural and small-scale livelihoods” he added.
“We urge the government to implement stricter quality control measures, review trade agreements that lead to duty-free or low-duty access for paper imports, undertake trade remedial measures, and ensure a level playing field for the Indian paper industry”, he said.
The domestic paper industry, which has a robust manufacturing base and significant backward integration with the farm sector, plays a vital role in India’s circular economy and sustainability goals.
Rohit Pandit, Secretary General IPMA said that such a high growth in imports not only jeopardises the domestic industry but also impacts employment generation and rural livelihoods linked to the paper value chain.
Published on May 30, 2025
This surge in imports has emerged as a significant challenge for the domestic paper industry
| Photo Credit:
alizadelgun
The Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) has voiced concern over the continued rise in paper and paperboard imports, which in FY25 alone saw a 33 per cent jump in volume from China. Imports from China now account for 27 per cent with ASEAN not too far behind at 20 per cent of the total imports. In value terms, the figure touched nearly ₹15,000 crore in FY25.
The latest data by the Commerce Department shows that paper and paperboard imports have doubled over the past four years, reaching a record 2.05 million tonnes in FY25 compared to 1.08 million tonnes in FY21. This surge has emerged as a significant challenge for the domestic paper industry, undermining its growth potential and threatening investments in capacity expansion.
In the four-year period since FY21, imports into India have grown at a CAGR of over 17 per cent in volume terms, one of the steepest increases amongst major commodities. Imports from China have increased at a CAGR of over 39 per cent, and from ASEAN at over 30 per cent. Imports of coated paper and paperboard, and uncoated writing and printing paper have more than doubled in volume terms.
Pawan Agarwal, President, IPMA, said, “The relentless surge in paper imports is a matter of grave concern for the domestic paper industry, which has invested substantially in capacity building and sustainability initiatives. The influx of predatory imports, especially from countries like China and Indonesia, has been eroding the competitiveness of the domestic manufacturers, leading to underutilisation of installed capacities.”
“Apart from the overall negative impact of cheap imports on the domestic paper industry, it is making most small and medium paper mills in India commercially unviable. According to the Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), out of over 850-900 paper mills in the country, only 550 are currently operational. This is a serious setback to the sector, which has traditionally supported a large number of rural and small-scale livelihoods” he added.
“We urge the government to implement stricter quality control measures, review trade agreements that lead to duty-free or low-duty access for paper imports, undertake trade remedial measures, and ensure a level playing field for the Indian paper industry”, he said.
The domestic paper industry, which has a robust manufacturing base and significant backward integration with the farm sector, plays a vital role in India’s circular economy and sustainability goals.
Rohit Pandit, Secretary General IPMA said that such a high growth in imports not only jeopardises the domestic industry but also impacts employment generation and rural livelihoods linked to the paper value chain.
Published on May 30, 2025
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The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
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