Factory opened and ran normally till Tues evening

Kolkata: For around 25 years before Covid struck, Protective Leather Gloves Private Limited Factory was a leader in exporting leather goods to foreign shores from the Tangra area. After Covid struck, and profits dwindled, its workers kept hoping for a turnaround, based on the experience of the Dey brothers.On Tuesday, the factory operated as usual. On Wednesday morning, the news of deaths and suicide attempts in the Dey family left 60-70 of the factory's core workers staring at a bleak future. "We were preparing to join work when the security guard said the Dey brothers had not turned up. They had left very early on Tuesday, minutes before some musclemen arrived at the main gate. These men left after an hour. On Wednesday, some mediapersons arrived and broke the news to us," said Bapi Sahu, an employee.Labourers said the company was facing immense challenges because of a similar factory located nearby. The raw material arrived mostly from the China Bazar area. "But we have been losing international deals and there were issues with raising enough liquid cash," an employee said. He said that earlier the company worked in two shifts — 6 am-2 pm and 2 pm-10 pm. "Now, though salaries were never an issue, we were working a single shift between 9 am and 6 pm-7 pm," he said. The workforce was often left idle, forcing the 250 workers to look for jobs elsewhere, significantly bringing down the staff strength.Creditors and former business partners, standing near the Dey residence on Wednesday, claimed the family owed them lakhs despite repeatedly asking them for the money. One of them, Manoj Gupta, said he was in business with Pranay and Prasun Dey. He said he went to their house on Tuesday evening to ask for money but found no one there. "Everyone's phones were switched off. Despite knocking several times, there was no response," he said.Gupta reportedly left a note on the door, asking the Dey' to get in touch. "I used to supply leather to them. I was owed a lot of money and the cheque they gave had bounced," Gupta said.Gupta, who had been in business with the Deys from 2020 to 2023, said that by June 2024, the two brothers had settled 70% of the debt they owed to Gupta. The final instalment was pending when this incident came to light. Gupta said, "I don't know the inner workings of their business but I heard they were sourcing goods from elsewhere. The business didn't shut down and they never treated me poorly. They were always cordial."The records of the ministry of corporate affairs say Protective Gloves Pvt Ltd is involved in tanning and dressing of leather and the various industrial and protective gloves are manufactured at the Seal Lane facility. The brothers are registered as directors and they submitted the last balance sheet to the govt in 2023. It was in the same year that the last annual general meeting of the company was held. According to records, the company's paid-up capital is Rs 50 lakh.