KOLKATA: The city-based Ruia Group said they have started making N95 masks under their flagship brand Dunlop as part of their foray into medical and preventive gear segment for the Rs 20,000 crore estimated opportunity in the next two-years arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ruia Group chairman Pawan Ruia said they have started distributing Dunlop brand N95 masks in the eastern region markets and slowly it will be distributed pan India.
He expects that the legacy of the brand will help greater penetration of their products among the masses.
The Dunlop brand was known for tyres. He said masks are the beginning and many products like PPE will be taken up in due course to deepen the product basket.
He said the target is to produce one lakh N95 masks, two lakh surgical masks and 10,000 PPEs per month.
One of the group companies Melrose Creations Private Ltd is executing this project and initially products are outsourced.
Two new factories one in Ganga Nagar near Kolkata and another one in Nimrana Rajasthan is in the pipeline with an estimated investment of Rs 40 crore, Ruia claimed.