Balakati Brass Industries (Odisha)

Introduction

Balakati (or Balakote), located at about 20 kilometers from Bhubaneswar city, hosts a cluster of micro-scale brass units. These are essentially artisan-based cottage industries that have been making hand-crafted brass articles for over a century, employing traditional technologies. There are close to 100 units in the cluster; however these units are operated intermittently based on market demands. On an average, 10-15 units are operating in the cluster on a continuous basis and each unit undertakes melting for about 50 days in a year; other associated operations such as shaping & forming and finishing are undertaken subsequently. The estimated annual turnover of the cluster is Rs 9.8 crore. The Balakati brass cluster provides direct employment to about 1000 people.

Products manufactured

Brass plates (small and medium), cups (small and medium), temple bells and other handicraft brass products

Number of MSMEs

100

Energy consumption

Low

Main fuels

Coal; charcoal; electricity

Production & turnover

141 tpa; Rs 9.8 crores (98 million)

Total energy consumption (toe)

206

Leading industry association(s)

• Balakati Kansa Pital Hastasilpa Unnayana Sanga

Energy efficiency initiatives

• TERI-SDC Partnership: Scaling up Energy Efficient Technologies in Small Enterprises (EESE) http://www.sameeeksha.org/index.php?option=com_projects&task=level&title=EESE&id=41

Cluster Profile

http://www.sameeeksha.org/pdf/clusterprofile/balakati-brass-Odisha.pdf

Other Resources

• MSME Development Institute (MSME-DI), Cuttack http://www.msmedicuttack.gov.in/
• http://dcmsme.gov.in/dips/BIPS-Khorda-2012.pdf

Source: Data pertains to 2015-16, collected primarily under the TERI-SDC EESE project.