Why are Jute Mills Concentrated along the Hugli River?

The jute textile industry has the distinction of topping the list in our foreign exchange earnings. Though there are certain jute factories in Bihar, Tamil Nadu and U.P. but this industry is mainly concentrated on the bank of the Hugli River in West Bengal.

The reasons for this concentration of jute mills in West Bengal are as under:

1. West Bengal is the store house of jute. It produces the highest number of bales of jute fibre.

2. This industry requires a lot of water which is easily available from the Hugli River.

3. Iron and coal which are required for the installation and running of jute factories are also available from the nearby mines of Raniganj.

4. Cheap Labour is easily available because of incoming labour from the adjoining provinces of Bihar and Orissa.

5. If some more raw material of jute is required it can easily be imported from Bangladesh.

6. Last but not the least, Calcutta is a good harbour which can easily export the jute manufactures to other countries of the world through its great network of ships.