1. SUDHA GRAMODYOG
317/1, New Mohanpuri, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh
Environmental Issues
Pertaining to Business
Legal Aspects of Business Assignment
Submitted by
ASHUTOSH KUMAR JHA (91011)
FMG XVIII ‘A’
2009-2011
Submitted to
Prof. K.L. Chawla
FORE School of Management, New Delhi

2. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
Table of Contents
About Industry – Handmade Papers .......................................................................... 3
About Company ......................................................................................................... 4
Location ..................................................................................................................... 4
Production of Handmade Paper................................................................................. 4
Environmental Impacts .............................................................................................. 7
Water Pollution ............................................................................................................... 8
Air Pollution ................................................................................................................... 9
Noise Pollution ............................................................................................................... 9
Solid Waste Management ................................................................................................ 9
Licenses and Certifications ......................................................................................... 9
Conclusion................................................................................................................ 10
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3. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
About Industry – Handmade Papers
Handmade paper production requires low capital investment, can easily set up in rural areas.
This has been used to encourage local entrepreneurship and assist in generating local
employment opportunities in rural areas. The production of handmade paper does not require
skilled labour and local population especially women can be absorbed in this industry. The
difference in cost of production of mill-made paper and handmade paper is marginal. It is an
environmentally sound process, depleting fewer resources and causes very little
pollution compared to paper mill factories. The units can be designed to specialize in the
production of a certain specialized variety of handmade paper, for example, watermark, filter
paper and drawing sheets, etc.
The Indian handmade paper industry has been identified as one of the village industry and the
industry has seen significant growth in last one decade because of improved demand not only
on national level but at the international arena. As per estimates, there are nearly more than
450 handmade paper units scattered all over India producing nearly 50,000 tonnes of
handmade paper & board. The Indian handmade paper industry had grown remarkably in the
recent past wherein the production of handmade paper industry has reached to a turnover of
Rs 250 crores.
Due to increased literacy, industrialization and modernization, the per capita consumption of
the paper and paper board has increased remarkably from 4.5 kg in the year 2000 to nearly
6.5 kg in the recent past. This industry provides employment to about 10,000 people and most
of them are situated in the rural areas. Although, the per capita consumption of paper and
paper board in India is low compared to the developed countries like US (350 kg), China (58
Kgs), Japan (225 Kgs) and world average 55 Kgs however the total quantity of paper
produced in India is quite significant with a total production of nearly 70 lakh tonnes per
annum. 1
Indian handmade paper industry contributes to less than 0.5 % of the total country’s
production of paper and paper board till the year 2005-06 and this share has recently
increased to nearly 0.7% in the recent year since the production of handmade paper which
was nearly 25,000 tonnes in the year 2005-06 now stands at nearly 50,000 tonnes. Although,
the country is self sufficient in the manufacturing of handmade paper & board, however, a
little quantity of specialty paper is imported.
1
Kumarappa National Handmade Paper Institute report, 2009
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4. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
About Company
Sudha Gramodyog Seva Samiti was established in 1996 by Mr.Suman Mishra. Being
encouraged to take forward his entrepreneurial spirit in environmentally astute manner, he
decided to set up a handmade paper facility. Two key reasons for this were lower requirement
of the starting capital and easy licensing under SSI unit assistance plan. Also, the raw
material for the plant is literally dirt cheap, mostly being used papers and discarded low
quality cotton balls. In last 15yrs, Sudha Gramodyog has made a name for itself as a
hallmark for an exclusive and unique range of handmade paper and hand-crafted paper
products. The products are designed keeping in mind the requirement of the customers and
their tastes, and the markets.
The manufacturing plant operates in one shift of 8 hours daily for 6 days in a week. Daily
average production level stands at 1500 Kgs of different variety of totally Indian, hand-
crafted, eco-friendly, acid-free, tree-free, handmade paper and handmade paper products.
Based on the customer specifications paper and products are customized in terms of quality,
colour, size and printing.
Location
Manufacturing plant is situated in Mohanpuri, outskirts of Meerut, in the state of Uttar
Pradesh. Manufacturing facility is spread over an area of 5 acres.
Production of Handmade Paper
The hand paper industry is one of the important industries under the village industries sector.
As the demand for handmade paper increased the manufacturers began to innovate and create
newer varieties of handmade paper in order to meet the demand. The different types of
handmade paper are banana handmade paper, batik handmade paper, floral handmade paper,
Crinkled handmade paper, mottled handmade paper, block printed handmade paper, textured
handmade paper, moon rock paper and many other.
The basic raw materials for handmade papers are
 Cotton rags
 Hosiery cuttings
 Re-cycled handmade paper itself
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5. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
Other than the basic raw material there are other components like
 Pigments
 Bleach
 Glue/ adhesive
 Additives
The process of making handmade paper involves a series of steps that are briefly discussed
below.
1. Sorting and dusting: the raw material that is to be used is manually sorted and foreign
material like buttons; plastic, synthetic fibres etc. are removed. To remove dust and dirt
the material is shaken vigorously.
2. Rag Chopping: The sorted and dusted material is chopped into pieces of equal size
using a rag chopper. In the past this process was done manually using a curved knife
mounted on a wooden board.
3. Beating: The raw material is mixed with water and harmless chemicals and beaten in a
Hollander beater. This consists of a U-shaped trough, with a drum; on the outer side of
this drum are iron blades that cut the raw material to make a pulp out of it. Inert
chemicals, like resin soap and alum are added to give the paper the desired consistency
and blot free characteristic. When making coloured and or textured papers, the colour
dyes and or textured materials like straw, hemp, grass, silk and jute fibres etc., are added
during this process. The resulting pulp is ready for sheet formation. There is a washing
drum as well that cleans the pulp and drains the dirty water. The quality of the paper to
be made determines the consistency of the pulp.
4. Sheet formation: Sheets of handmade paper can be made in two ways.
 Dipping Method: This method is normally used for fine or thin paper. The pulp is
diluted with water and put into a masonry trough or vat. The lifting mould (a mesh on
a wooden frame) is dipped into the trough, shaken evenly and lifted out with the pulp
on it. The consistency of the pulp in the tank should be kept constant all the time.
 Lifting Method: This method is used for all paper and especially for card paper. A
fixed quantity of pulp is poured evenly onto a mould, which is then clamped between
two wooden deckles (frames) and then dipped into a water tank. The mould in then
lifted using a lever mechanism that allows the excess water to drain away.
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6. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
5. Couching: Once the sheet is formed, the wet paper is transferred onto a cloth like muslin
or felt sheet and a stack of interleaved sheets in made.
6. Pressing: A hydraulic press is used to remove the excess water from the sheets. Pressing
reduces the thickness of the paper and the sheets become more compact. This process
improves the physical properties of the paper and helps drying.
7. Drying: Even after the sheets have been pressed, they still contain about 50% to 65% of
the moisture. The sheets are hung in the sunlight to dry. Solar dries can speed up the
process and the space required for drying. Coloured papers are dried in the shade to
prevent the sun from bleaching the colour.
8. Cleaning and Sizing: Small particles of dirt and other foreign matter are removed
manually with a sharp instrument. The cleaned sheets are coated with a layer of starch to
improve the quality of the paper and prevent feathering. This process is called sizing.
This can be done manually using a brush or by dipping the sheet into a vat containing
sizing chemicals.
9. Calendaring: The sheets are then placed between metallic plates and passed through
spring-loaded rollers in a calendaring machine. This makes the paper smooth and
increases the gloss of the paper.
10. Cutting: The sheets are cut neatly according the required size using a cutting machine.
At this point the sheet still has a deckle edge. The sheet may remain uncut if required by
the customer.
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7. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
Agro Waste + Raw Digestion
Cleaning
Material (Addition of Alkali)
Washing Beating Bleaching
Beating
+ Straining Lifting
Colourizing Chemicals
Pressing Drying Calendering
Cutting/ Sizing Finished Product
Process Flow Chart – Handmade Paper
Environmental Impacts
The production and use of paper has a number of adverse effects on the environment which
are known collectively as paper pollution. Pulp mills contribute to air, water and land
pollution. Discarded paper is a major component of many landfill sites, accounting for about
35 percent by weight of municipal solid waste (before recycling). Conventionally, paper is
made by utilizing wood. However, excessive usage of wood for pulp and paper making
results in denudation of forests leading to environmental problems. The paper that we
normally use at home and in the office is mill-made and is made from wood pulp that is made
by cutting trees and adding chemicals and dyes to them. There is no doubt that cutting of
trees is harmful to the environment, but the chemicals and dyes that are used to make the
wood pulp, are equally harmful and contribute to the Greenhouse effect.
Worldwide, Pulp and paper is the third largest industrial polluter of air, water, and land and it
is estimated that this industry releases well over 200 million kg of toxic pollution each year in
the atmosphere. Also, the pulp and paper industry is the fifth largest consumer of energy
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8. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
worldwide, accounting for four percent of the entire world's energy use. The pulp and paper
industry uses more water to produce a ton of product than any other industry.
An environmental friendly alternative is handmade paper. Handmade paper is completely
wood-free and uses cellulosic sources (non-woody substrata). These alternative substrata
can be agricultural wastes such as sugarcane bagasse or straw belonging to paddy, wheat,
maize, barley, ragi, millets etc. silk cotton has also been used for pulp and paper
making. Here, the plant is undisturbed but only the silk cotton is harvested from the fallen
pods, which is renewable. Handmade paper is not only eco-friendly but is recyclable as well.
This paper is made from cotton waste, cotton cloth rags, waste biomass like grass, jute, husk,
waste wool etc. Most of the time handmade paper is made from pre consumed products. The
entire process of making this paper is done by hand. No harmful chemicals are used in the
production of handmade paper. The texture and variety is created by adding various natural
products like flower petals, grass, leaves, silk threads, agro products etc.
Few of the pollutant factors considered are as follow:
Water Pollution
Paper manufacturing is a water intensive, needing 15,000 cubic litre for every tonne of paper
produced. Chlorine and compounds of chlorine are used in the bleaching of wood pulp.
Usage of elemental chlorine results in release of dioxins which is among the most toxic
human released pollutant. Being economically cheaper, industry has lagged its feet in moving
away from this compound.
Sudha Gramodyog established a water treatment plant 7 years back to tackle the water
emission issues. This treatment plant follows a 7 step process for water purification and
makes water reusable in the process again. This includes making water ph neutral. Plant can
process 20,000 cubic litres of water every day.
Company has moved over to natural products to lower the pollutants level in various
effluents. Instead of chlorine, company has started using Alum for water treatment. The dyes
and pigments for coloration are naturally produced from leaves and flowers.
In terms of Chemicals and water pollution, company has achieved almost zero emission
level. Further, company is planning to install rain-water harvesting system to further
improve its environmental footprint.
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9. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
Air Pollution
The core processes of paper manufacturing have nothing that would cause air pollution
directly. Only air pollutant emission is from the generator set for backup power. To control
this emission company has installed catalytic converter which converts the carbon
monoxide and other harmful gases to safer gases and water vapour. A bag filter system and
one ESP system has been installed to control the dust generated from various process units.
Other than this there is also general problem of bad odour associated with some pulp
manufacturing plants. The plant being in remote area, this issue has not much importance.
Noise Pollution
Handmade paper process involves basic rollers and spreaders. This involves machinery with
very little noise levels associated with them. The biggest noise source on the plant is the
generator set, when in use. To reduce the noise emission level from generator, a box
(encasement) has been built to reduce the vibrations and noise pollution level to acceptable
level. Noise level at the plant boundary is expected to be less than 55dB without considering
any attenuation factors. Acoustic dampeners have been installed in the foundations and
insulators in the interiors to further muffle the noise emissions.
Solid Waste Management
Although minimal, company does produce solid waste in form of rags and leftovers after
refining of the pulp. Currently, this waste is dumped into a landfill with permission of the
Uttar Pradesh pollution Control department. This waste, being devoid of any poisonous
contents, is deemed physically and environmentally harmless and poses not toxic threats.
Wasted products and redirected into the recycled paper raw material.
Licenses and Certifications
Being classified under Small Scale Industry (SSI) unit, company has to be registered with a
clutch of agencies, besides being registered as a company. This includes:
 Registration of S.S.I.
 Land allotment and Land use Permission
 NOC from Pollution Control Board
 Registration of Trade Tax
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10. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
 Electric connection for construction and Power Sanction
 Assurance for allotment by Excise Department
 Permission/No Objection from District Magistrate
Among these the registration and licensing provided by Pollution Control dept. is of our
interest. The principal functions, as spelt out in the Water Act, 1974 and Air Act, 1981 is the
prevention, control and abatement of water and air pollution by the SSI unit. The pollution
control board also assists the industries and entrepreneurs in discharging their daily basic
obligations to safe guard environment.
Following are the functions undertaken by the pollution control board:
 Issue of No Objection Certificates from the environmental pollution point of view
including adequacy of the site from the environmental angle
 Issue of Consent under provisions of section 25/26 of the Water (Prevention and
Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
 Issue of Consent under provisions of section-21 of the Air (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act, 1981
 Assessment and collection of Water Cess, under provision of Water (Prevention and
Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977
 Identification and assessment of industrial pollution sources
 Assessment of ambient air quality.
 Assessment of quality of inland surface waters
Licenses are provided for a period of 5 yrs and have to be renewed thereafter. Besides these
there is yearly inspection of the premises by the pollution control inspectors. Although paper
and pulp industry are part of designated pollutant industries, handmade paper is exempted
from this.
Conclusion
Handmade papers and its products, although very prevalent and widespread in usage, are
environmentally lesser taxing. Developments in handmade paper quality have enabled it to be
used not only for decorative purposes but also to meet the day-to-day requirement of paper
for writing, printing etc. Today handmade paper is made in such a way that it meets office
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11. Environmental Issues Pertaining to Business
requirements as well. The paper can be used in Inkjet and Laser Printers and can be used for
office stationery as well. Some of the environmental advantages offered by handmade papers
are:
 Firstly, handmade paper manufacturing process is lesser energy intensive.
 Secondly, it uses non-wood raw materials, which does not require the manufacturers to
cut trees and reduced deforestation compared to each ton of mill produced paper needing
17 large trees.
 Thirdly, handmade paper is eco-friendly with usage of natural products for the bleach
and pigments for dyes compared to extensive use chlorine and other chemical dyes in the
mill produced papers.
 Besides the green features, handmade paper also boasts off quality and possibilities
generally not achieved by mill papers in terms of tensile and its double-fold strength.
 Finally, apart from green features, the Handmade Paper also has a fine and elegant
quality suitable for girt papers, creative purposes, visiting cards, letter heads, etc.
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