Paper Manufacturing Industry in India

The pulp and paper industry is a large manufacturing segment in India, with mostly the papers produced in the packaging industry. There are many interesting facts about the Indian Paper Industry about how writing is manufactured and raw materials used. The Paper Industry in India has grown tremendously over the years, with an increase in production from 20.37 million tonnes in 2017 – 2018 to 25 million tonnes in 2019-2020. Hence, the rate of growth of the paper industry is almost 10% per annum. Paper has multiple applications used in writing, newspaper, packaging, tissue papers, face wipes, paper cups etc. The article highlights some essential details on the paper industry and its manufacturing. 

Important facts about the Indian Paper Industry

• The total share of India in the paper market on a global level is 5%. As per reports and statistics, the per capita consumption of paper in India is 15kg, much less than the global average of 57kg. 
• The estimated annual turnover of the paper industry in India is INR 70,000 crore, with a domestic market size of INR 80,000 crores. The contribution of the paper industry towards the exchequer is INR 5,000 crore, 
• The old paper mills used different types of raw materials to manufacture paper. 
• Interestingly, the Indian paper industry is where the first machine manufacturing machine was set up in 1812. The first paper mill established in India was at Serampore in West Bengal. However, due to a lack of demand, the paper mill and its business failed. 
• The second industry was set up in 1870 at Ballygunj, and this led to the birth of the core paper Industry in India. 
• As per the geographical location, Maharashtra is the major paper producing state. Maharashtra consists of the largest number of paper mills and produces the majority percentage of paper in India. 
• The Indian paper industry’s annual turnover of 700 billion INR provides over 0.5 million individuals direct employment. 
• The overall consumption of paper is expected to hit 24 million tonnes in 2024 – 25. In the past 5 to 7 years, more than 5 USD billion investment has been made towards the paper industry for setting up state of the art infrastructure.