Almost 80-90 per cent of the sticks used to make agarbattis are imported from Vietnam: ITC's Sanjiv Puri

Apart from beauty soaps and deodorants, homegrown FMCG major ITC also manufactures incense sticks under the brand name Mangaldeep. All the agarbattis are made by women self-help groups, but a lesser known fact of the business was shared by Sanjiv Puri, president — FMCG, ITC.

Almost "80-90 per cent of the sticks used to make agarbattis are imported from Vietnam because duty is between 0-5 per cent". These are a part of the overall "$5 billion worth wood or wood-based products that India imports" annually to fulfill its supply needs. So next time you burn those incense sticks, remember they have an "imported" element to them.