Printing industry in doldrums

Vijayawada: Printing industry which provides livelihood to more than 5,000 workers and traders in the city, plunges into crises with drastic fall of business and income.

• The printing units fails to get orders for printing books, diaries, calendars and other materials like pamphlets and wall posters due to decline in business
• Social media hit the business of printing units, paper traders and other workers
• The industry provides employment to more than 5,000 workers and traders

October and November are the busy season for printing of diaries, greeting cards and calendars in the 100 odd printing units located in Arundalpet, Suryaraopet, Maruthi Nagar, Gandhi Nagar and other parts of the city. Most of these printing units have left without orders for printing of calendars, greeting cards and diaries this season.

Textile traders, gold and jewellery traders, electronic showrooms and many other traders and distributors used to distribute calendars and key chains as gift to customers every New Year.

But, due to decline of business and fall of revenue most traders in the city are not giving gifts to customers. Consequently, the printers are not getting orders unlike before.

Sri Vijay Krishna offset printers’ proprietor L S Raju said many printers are struggling to continue the business due to increasing expenses and falling income. He said the shop rents, electricity bills, wages, taxes and other maintenance expenses are increasing year after year forcing the owners to shut down the activity.

Vijayawada is the biggest printing and publication centre in the State. Customers from 13 districts and some parts of Telangana too visit for printing books, diaries, calendars and other materials like pamphlets and wall posters.

Social media and smart phones have severely affected the functioning of printing units, said A Kiran, another printer. He said people are sending greetings and messages on WhatsApp and other means within a fraction of second without spending much money.

He said earlier, printers in Vijayawada used to print lakhs of greeting cards every year and now hardly one or two customers are coming for printing their own greeting cards.

DTP operators, paper traders, paper cutters and book binding workers too are losing their livelihood due to drastic fall of printing business during the last three years.

Many printers are planning to shift the printing units to Jakkampudi village and holding meetings in this regard, said L S Raju, one of the senior printers of the city.

By Md Ameen