Indian firms resume operations in Bangladesh after protest disruptions

Pearl Global Industries said its factories resumed operations on Aug 7 with over 97 percent staff attendance

People waves Bangladeshi flags on top the Ganabhaban, the Prime Minister's residence, as they celebrate the resignation of PM Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka, Bangladesh, August 5, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain

Indian companies are slowly resuming normal operations in neighbouring Bangladesh following disruption linked to deadly anti-government protests that forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee to India.

Here are some details of what Indian companies have said about their activities in Bangladesh, where many products made by India-based firms are household names:

LIFE INSURANCE CORPORATION OF INDIA

LIC of Bangladesh partially resumed operations in the country from Aug 8, when Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus took charge of Bangladesh's caretaker government, after closing, its offices for three days.

It has 13 offices in the country and sold nearly 4,500 policies in the financial year ended March 2024.

The unit of the Indian government-backed LIC, however, said the situation had "still not reached the stage of normalcy" and "may continue to hamper the operations".

PEARL GLOBAL INDUSTRIES

The Indian garment maker, which supplies to global brands including GAP, Macy's and Ralph Lauren, said its factories resumed operations on Aug 7 with "normal 97 percent +" staff attendance, after two days of a curfew-mandated shutdown.

It said it was operating 70 percent of its facilities at full capacity and would resume operations at the rest when it felt more confident about the security of its workers in certain parts of Bangladesh.

It has four plants, in the capital, Dhaka, and Gazipur where it manufactures hoodies, tracksuit pants and other items.

MARICO

The consumer goods maker, which sells its Parachute brand of hair oil and Saffola cooking oil in Bangladesh, said on Aug 7 a majority of its retail sales force and distributors had resumed their work. It expected manufacturing to follow suit soon.

Marico, however, said it remained watchful of the situation and was prioritising the safety of its employees, factory workers and distributors.

The company earned 44 percent of its international revenues of 25.10 billion Indian rupees ($299 million) from Bangladesh in the fiscal year ended March 2024, and has a distribution network of more than 770,000 outlets in the country.