The foundry industry in the flood-affected Kolhapur region of Maharashtra has had a double whammy.

It had been grappling with a slowdown due to sluggish demand from the auto sector when the floods destroyed several units in the region, jeopardising the ₹370-crore export business.

Kolhapur is situated in the south-west corner of the State and is well-connected to major cities such as Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

Automotive and engineering spares, foundries and sugar mills are the major industries in the region. Kolhapur has about 300 foundries distributed across four industrial areas.

Sachin Patil, Chairman of Kolhapur Foundry and Engineering Cluster, told BusinessLine that many foundry units around Kolhapur have suffered damages due to floodwaters.

The water has rendered many machines and metal forges useless. Even those who have not suffered flood damage are facing economic losses as workers have not been able to reach these units, he said.

Sluggish business

Many units which provide components to auto giants such as Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors, are already facing sluggish business due to the slowdown in the automobile market. Floods will only add to their woes, Patil added.

Major pollutant

An executive with the local foundry industries association, on condition of anonymity, said the units where water has fully inundated the machinery could also pollute the neighbouring regions as the sand used for processing hot metal could prove to be a major pollutant.

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