Karnaphuli Paper Mills

Karnaphuli Paper Mills is a Government-owned paper pulp and paper manufacturer in Chandraghona, Chittagong Division, Bangladesh established in 1951 by Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation. In 1964 it was sold to Dawood Group. After the Independence of Bangladesh the company was taken over by Bangladesh Industrial Development Corporation. It is the largest paper producing factory in Bangladesh and operates as a subsidiary of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation. In 2016, it has faced criticism for not having an effluent treatment facility.

Karnaphuli Paper Mills Ltd.
Company typeGovernment-owned corporation
IndustryPaper and forest products
Founded1953 (1953)
Headquarters,
ParentBangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation

History

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The 1949 Industrial Conference recommended that a pulp and paper mill be set up in East Pakistan in an effort to make Pakistan self-sufficient in paper.[1] In mid-February 1950, the government's Development Board approved the construction of the mill on the Karnafuli River.[2] In 1954, there were violent riots between Non-Bengali and Bengali workers.[3]

Chandragona, 26 miles upstream from Chittagong, was selected as the site because of ample availability of bamboo and water there, and ready transportation through Chittagong Port.[1] The mill was designed to produce 30,000 tons of high quality paper annually.[2] By January 1952, a water supply plant, power plant, and company housing had been built, and construction of the mill proper was underway.[1] Karnaphuli Paper Mills began operating in 1953, run by the Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation, a government-owned corporation.[4]

In 1964 it was sold to Dawood Group. After the Independence of Bangladesh the company was taken over by Bangladesh Industrial Development Corporation. As of 2016, it is the largest paper producing factory in Bangladesh and operates as a subsidiary of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation.[4] In 2016, it faced criticism for not having an effluent treatment facility.[5][6]

CEOs

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  • 1952–1953: Christian Kaijser[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "On the Bank of the Karnafulli: A Paper Mill Comes Up". Pakistan Quarterly. Vol. 2, no. 1. January 1952. p. 66.
  2. ^ a b Ahmad, Nafis (July 1950). "Industrial Development in East Bengal (East Pakistan)". Economic Geography. 26 (3): 191. doi:10.2307/141708. JSTOR 141708.
  3. ^ Rasel, Azizul (2024-06-10). "Bengali and Non-Bengali Riots at Karnaphuli Paper Mills". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
  4. ^ a b "Karnafuli Paper Mills". Banglapedia. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
  5. ^ "One mill killing Karnaphuli". 2016-06-05. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
  6. ^ "Most Chittagong industrial units do not have ETPs". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
  7. ^ Burling, Ingeborg, ed. (1956). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1957 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1957] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 500.