History records show that in 1902, the looms at AFT numbered 650 with 40,000 spindles for its 2,500 workers. The unit was engaged in spinning cotton and stable fibre yarn; materials were secured from the Indian Union and from the United States. Since 1924, the mill came to be officially known as Anglo-French Textile Co. Ltd.
The Indo-French agreement, however, provided for concessional treatment to the company’s export for six months from November 1954. Immediately after the termination of the concession, the problems arose one after the other, and it has been all downhill since. From May 1955, the mill was partially closed for want of work, and a large number of workers were laid off. Soon thereafter, an economic crisis in the textile industry and the management action to tide over the crisis led to a conflict between workers and the management. The Centre referred the matter to the Arbitration Committee in 1955.
From 1956, the company was managed by Messers. Best and Company Limited, and the Centre exempted the textile mills from export duty on cotton cloth produced. The total production of yarn was 49.45 million kg and fabrics 26.35 million metres in 1960. The mill made only a special variety of cloth for the French colonies in Africa.
In 1970, the agreement with Messers Best & Co was terminated. The company added C unit for spinning and a weaving unit during 1975-76. The company turned sick in the early 1980s because of surplus labour, old machinery with low productivity and labour unrest.
In spite of unrest, the mill was taken over G.N. Jatia of Jatia and Somania Group of Bombay. It was closed again in 1983 with more than 7,000 employees and accumulated loss of Rs. 6 crore and bank outstanding of more than Rs. 6 crore.
