Saying that the high yarn price was affecting their business, members of 18 textile unions under the banner of the Erode Cloth Merchant Association began their two-day protest by closing shops on Wednesday.
Situated in Kongalamman Kovil Street, Chokkanath Street, Ramasamy Street, NMS Compound, Kamarajar Street, Easwaran Kovil Street and market areas, the city has over 3,000 shops affecting daily wage earners including loadmen and motorists.
Members said the continuous rise in yarn prices has hit the industry hard as they are unable to do business. He said the price of yarn has increased by 40% per kg in the last one month and still manufacturers are being forced to stop production.
The members wanted the thread price to be regulated and fixed once a month as opposed to the current fixation on a daily or weekly basis.
He said that direct business transactions will be affected due to the two-day strike and other workers indirectly associated with this sector will also be affected. Most of the cloth roads of the city were deserted due to the closure of shops. He urged the central and state governments to take necessary steps to regulate the price of yarn.
Members of Bleaching and Sizing Association, Screen Printing, Calendering Mill Owners Association and yarn traders also participated in the strike.