Brick by brick, ‘coal mafia’ chokes kiln industry in Ludhiana.

Ludhiana: Prospective homeowners and property developers are facing a fresh blow to their hip pockets as the price of bricks jumped more than 5% this week, driven by what industry leaders describe as a predatory "coal mafia".The sudden price hike is the latest in a series of surging input costs — including steel and cement — that threaten to stall the regional construction sector and force the permanent closure of hundreds of brick kilns by April 1. The retail price of a single brick has climbed from Rs 76 to Rs 80 in just three days. While the figure may seem marginal, builders warn the cumulative effect on a standard home build is devastating."Construction costs are shooting through the roof," said Jaswinder Singh, a local resident currently extending his home. "The cost of steel bars had already increased, and now bricks have followed suit. Building a home has never been more difficult." Sunil, a building material store owner, noted the market had been braced for the shift. "Kiln owners have been signaling this for weeks because the price of coal—the primary fuel for baking bricks—has been rising steadily," he said.Supply Chain SqueezeThe Punjab Brick Kiln Owners Association has pointed the finger at supply chain manipulation. According to the association, coal prices have nearly doubled, creating an unsustainable overhead for manufacturers. The price of each tonne of coal has jumped from Rs 10,000 to the current market rate of between Rs 16,000 and 17,000. The final cost in Punjab is between Rs 22,000 and Rs 23,000 (including freight and GST).Industries on the BrinkAssociation President Ramesh Mohi and General Secretary Lakhbir Singh Sandhu have issued an ultimatum to state and central governments: intervene against the coal syndicates or witness the collapse of the industry. "If conditions do not improve by the end of this month, we will shut down the kilns and hand the keys over to the administration," the leaders said in a joint statement. The association warned that without a govt-led crackdown on "arbitrary practices" in the coal sector, the industry would be forced to cease operations on April 1.