The impact of the Israel-Iran conflict has started affecting all countries and India is no exception. The biggest impact is on exporters in Ludhiana who are fearful and anxious about the future of their shipments worth crores. Goods they have sent are not reaching their destinations and orders from the other side have come to a halt, causing trouble to them.In the industrial city, where various industries are located, the businessmen are saying that their exports have been severely affected by the ongoing conflict.Talking to The Tribune, Vikas Jain, who exports garments to countries such as the UAE, Oman and Qatar, said it was a grim situation as everything was halted for the time being.“The freight which was 400 US dollars per container had risen to 5,000 US dollars. We are under constant fear as the war has started showing its impact”, he said.Pankaj Sharma, president, Association of Trade and Industrial Undertakings (ATIU), convened a meeting of the exporters wing of the ATIU and said the exporters, particularly those dealing in engineering goods, hosiery and garments, highlighted multiple challenges affecting their operations.He said: “They have reported widespread cancellation of export orders due to weakening global demand, along with delays and suspension of payments from overseas buyers. Adding to their distress, a sharp increase in raw material prices within the country has made production increasingly unviable”.Vijay Sharma, MD, FAS International, and head of the export unit of the ATIU, said: “The lack of remittances from customers and absence of support from financial institutions have made it difficult for exporters to sustain and plan operations.”He further elaborated that shipments routed through the Strait of Hormuz—covering key destinations such as Dubai, Dammam, Riyadh, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Iraq — have been severely disrupted. Cargo is being diverted to smaller ports such as Sohar, Fujairah and Khor Al Fakkan, leading to heavy congestion.In several cases, shipping lines have arbitrarily offloaded cargo at ports such as Chennai and Hong Kong, issuing ‘End of Voyage’ notices, leaving exporters stranded without logistical clarity.The exporters from the city also raised serious concerns over arbitrary and excessive charges imposed by shipping lines, ranging between USD 2,000 to USD 6,000 per container, further escalating their financial burden.Rakesh Kapoor, MD, Paramount Impex, said: “We are left with no alternative but to bear these unjustified costs as buyers are already looking for reasons to cancel orders due to restrictions imposed by shipping lines.”The former CII chairman, Rahul Ahuja, said shipments to Iran, Egypt and UAE were held up.Orders are not coming from Europe and West Asia and the input costs have gone high.Another leading garment exporters, Madhur Gupta of Madhur Impex and Rajesh Gupta of National Yarns, pointed out that the current disruption has created a pre-Covid-like situation, which could derail business momentum. They cautioned that such instability is likely to shake the confidence of foreign buyers, leading to long-term adverse effects on export relationships.Pranav Chadha, MD, BAUM Tools and a recognised star exporter, emphasised the urgent need for government support, stating that the situation demands immediate relief measures to safeguard the export sector.Many units may not survive: BizmanIndermohan Singh, director, Turbo Tools, a leading exporter of engineering goods to the UAE, warned that if the current situation persists for a few more weeks, many units might not survive.Pankaj Sharma said ATIU had formally written to the Ministry of Commerce, urging immediate intervention and relief measures for exporters, keeping in view the prolonged uncertainty and severity of the crisis.