CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME, INDIA DIAGNOSTIC STUDY SME PETHA (SWEET) CLUSTER AGRA (UTTAR PRADESH) BY ADESH MOHAN MINISTRY OF FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES NEW DELHI DEVELOPED UNDER THE TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR THE CLUSTER DEVELOPMENT AGENTS, ORGANISED BY UNIDO CDP NEW DELHI & THE ENTREPRENEURSHIP DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE OF INDIA (EDII), AHMEDABAD YEAR 2001 The views expressed in the Diagnostic Studies are those of the authors and should not be attributed to UNIDO or to the institutions they may represent. AGRA PETHA CLUSTER CONTENTS NO. TOPIC PAGE 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Global Production of Fruits & Vegetables 1.2 About 'Petha' 1.3 The Petha Cluster At Agra 1.4 A Checkered Path of Growth 1.5 The Present Scenario 2 THE PRODUCTION PROCESS 3 3 SKETCH OF THE SMES, OTHER ENTERPRISES & 4 INSTITUTIONS IN THE CLUSTER 3.1 Industry Structure At Agra 3.2 Local Institutions 3.3 Central Government Institutions 3.4 The Cluster Map 4 ANALYSIS OF BUSINESS OPERATIONS 8 4.1 Raw Material 4.2 Market 4.3 Networking In The Petha Industry 4.4 By-Products 4.5 Industrial Space 4.6 Finance-Term Loans And Working Capital Needs 4.7 Machinery, Production And Testing AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 5 ASSESSMENT OF ORGANISATION & LINKAGES 11 · A Static Cluster · Association Has Not Played A Proactive Role · Modernization Of Plant And Modification Of Product Is Required · Testing And Quality Control · Brand Building 6 SWOT ANALYSIS 12 · Strengths · Weakness · Opportunities · Threats 7 VISION FOR THE CLUSTER & ACTION PLANS 13 7.1 The Vision Statement 7.2 Action Plan (First Year) 7.3 Action Plan (Second & Third Year) AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 GLOBAL PRODUCTION OF FRUITS & VEGETABLES Horticulture is one of the most important economy sectors of India. The country produces over 130 million tons of fruits and vegetables and with that it stands second in world production. The fruits and vegetables processing industry has been termed as the 'Sun-rise industry' for India. The global processing business is valued around Rs16000 billion and India’s contribution to that is Rs1400 billion. It is also interesting to note that at present only 2% of India production of fruits & vegetables is commercially processed, whereas in the developed countries this figure is more than 50%. The country's average annual growth rate of processed fruits and vegetables over the last five years has been around 22%. 1.2 ABOUT 'PETHA' The fruit 'Ash Gourd', the botanical name of which is Benincasa hispida and is commonly known in India as Petha or termed as Kushmand in ancient ayurveda, is believed to have remarkable curative properties. Wholesome and nutritive, it is known to act like a blood coagulant and is used in treatment of peptic ulcers and obesity. The delicious sweet preparations made from it are used for the treatment of tuberculosis, weakness of the heart and anemia. The Petha has been an Indian favourite for centuries, not only for its medicinal properties but also for its sublime flavour. This innocuous pumpkin like vegetable has been transformed into a gourmet’s fantasy in the famous crystalline and translucent form of sweet Petha. 1.3 THE PETHA CLUSTER AT AGRA The Petha cluster in Agra is more than a century old. Petha here refers to a form of sweet that is made from Ash-Pumpkins. The clustering of enterprises involved in production of Petha sweet occurred in Agra due to the availability of raw fruit here and the fondness of local people for sweets. Most of Petha manufacturing units are located at Nurie Darwaza in Agra. Legend has it that the Empress Nur Jahan’s convoy halted at this spot, which housed the Petha industry at that time. She was offered the humble Petha as a traditional Indian offering of sweets to the guest and the Empress liked its taste and lavished praise on it. The traders were so touched by the royal approval that they named the market Nurie Darwaza. The Petha fruit is easily available in Agra and nearby areas. The Bania and the Muslim community were the main ones to be involved in this trade and their community's bias has been the major cause for the growth of this industry. However, the growth of the industry has been extremely slow because of traditional processing. The processing of the sweet is still completely manual. Only two-three units have recently started using certain amount of technology for the preservation of the sweet. 1 AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 1.4 CHECKERED PATH OF GROWTH The checkered history of Petha sweet cluster is characterized by the change of environment both external as well as internal compulsions: Period upto 1980: The growth was extremely slow but steady. Agra was emerging as a major trading center and more and more businessmen were starting to set up their manufacturing units here. During the 1990s: · The numbers of Petha processing units increased remarkably but most of them were unauthorised · Some improvements in process like introduction of canning technology · Number of commission agents was doubled. · Some exports started to U.S.A. & Middle East Countries · Pollution control board had directed to shift all the units to another place because of pollution of river Yamuna. The State Government arranged for land in Kalindi Vihar to set up all the units there. 1.5 THE PRESENT SCENARIO Although the production of Petha sweet has been started in many parts of U.P. and Delhi yet the Petha of Agra ranks at the top because of its good taste and variety. At present there are about 500 units that are producing Petha sweet in Agra. However, only three or four of them are working efficiently and have adopted canning technology to export their products in the international markets. The demand for Petha sweet in the domestic market is also increasing day by day as the sweet is a quite an affordable one and is known to give energy and keeps the body cool in summers. This is a labour oriented work as not much mechanisation has been done as yet. Easy & cheaper processing and easy loan system through commission agents has lead to sub contracting of production. Many workers after receiving experience of 2-3 years have started running their own units with a small working capital investment, which too is easily available from commission agents. Environmental degradation caused by effluents let out by the manufacturing unties has been worrying the State Government. The waste water from Petha manufacturing units has higher content of BOD (Biological Oxygen Demand) and COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand) and also contains some suspended solids, dissolved solids etc. This waste-water is usually let out in the river Yamuna that makes the water unusable and unsafe. The State Government is planning to shift all the Petha manufacturing units at Kalindi Vihar where a common waste water treatment plant has been establishes, but most of the manufacturers are not keen on shifting their units because of lack of other infrastructure facilities there. Besides, the small manufacturers lack the purchasing power to buy their own pie ce of land. 2 AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 2. THE PRODUCTION PROCESS PROCESS FLOW CHART – PETHA SWEET Petha Fruit Washing Sorting Cutting into pieces Removal of seeds Cutting into small pieces Pieces are pierced with nail like spikes Pieces are immersed in Lime Water for 2 hrs Washing with fresh water Boiling in water having Phitkiri Pieces are finally immersed in Canning boiling sugar syrup for an hour Drying in trays Packing 3 AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 3. SKETCH OF THE SMES, OTHER ENTERPRISES & INSTITUTIONS 3.1 THE INDUSTRY STRUCTURE AT AGRA The city of Agra enjoys a world-fame because of the Taj Mahal, which is why one can find tourist inflow here throughout the year. In the industrial map of India, Agra is famous for its leather shoe manufacturing, Petha manufacturing and even generator production. Due to pollution related problems, most of the industries are being shifted to the outskirts of the city. STRUCTURE OF THE INDUSTRY It is estimated that there are as many as 500 units in this industry, each one employing on an average 6 persons thus leading to a direct employment of almost 3000 persons. Besides, another 1000 persons are dependent on the related enterprises and trading activities of the industry. A classification of these units according to a geographical area in Agra district is given as under: Geographical Distribution of the Petha Sweet Industry Place Number of Units Noorie Darwaja 380 Sheetla Gali 50 Bagh Muzzafar Khan 40 Chippitola 10 Moti Katra 20 Total 500 The Petha industry and businesses can be broadly classified as: · Big Groups having their own production units or shops. They supply their products to different cities and have even started exporting sweets. · Medium groups having their own production units, shop etc but they supply their product to commission agents and not directly to markets in different cities. · Very small groups having their own production unit but they are dependent upon the commission agents even for the raw material and marketing of the product. · Commission Agents who have no production units of their own but are involved in trading activity. The structure of the industry has an upside down pattern of different categories of units according to their turnover: 4 AGRA PETHA CLUSTER 10 Units – Rs30 crores 40 Units – Rs25 crores 450 Units – Rs45 crores 3.2 LOCAL INSTITUTIONS · Shahid Bhagat Singh Kutir Petha Udhyog Association, Agra There are about 500 manufacturing units of Petha sweet in Agra but only 100 units hold the membership of this association. The association was formed in 1980 to safeguard the interest of the industry by presenting to the Government departments, the problems and the difficulties caused by the Policies etc.