‘People’s Company’ revives KINFRA unit in Kannur

Thiruvananthapuram: After their efforts to bring the handloom sector back to life, a group of young engineers is on a mission to revive a garment unit at KINFRA Textile Centre in Kannur. They have already employed about 200 women and bagged orders from an international brand.

Titled People’s Company, the group of six engineering students from the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, has taken up the mission with the support of the State Industries Department and KINFRA. The new venture will be inaugurated soon.

A garment unit earlier run by a Mumbai-based firm which was later closed down following labour issues is being revived by the youths. They had to make a huge investment for which Government agencies offered soft loans.

The youths approached leading garment brands and received orders from an international brand for shirts. "To begin with we plan to make 20,000 shirts, which could be increased later," said Raqib Rasheed, one of the members. The shirts are being made with the fabric prescribed by the company and as per their designs. The 200-odd women offered employment are from the locality itself.

“It’s a challenging task that the youths are taking up and we hope it would be an inspiration to many others to come forward and take up such challenges,” said KINFRA managing director S.Ramnath.

Mechanical engineers Raqib and Ashik Salim, electrical engineer Shyam Krishna, applied electronics engineer Anto Davis, computer engineer Shahas V.B and electronics and communications student Mohammed Junaid are the youths behind the intitaive.