Made in Bihar: Russian Army marches on with shoes from Indian company

The war between Russia and Ukraine is being fought in Eastern Europe, but the shoes in which Putin's soldiers are marching on are being delivered from our very own Bihar!

The boots for Russian soldiers are manufactured by a company called Competence Exports, ANI Digital has reported.

The report also reveals that while safety shoes are manufactured by the company for Russian soldiers, it also makes designer shoes for European countries like France, Spain, Italy, and the UK.

Shib Kumar Roy, the general manager of the company, told ANI, “We started the Hajipur facility in 2018, and the main interest is to generate local employment. At Hajipur, we make safety shoes that are meant to be exported to Russia. Total exports are for Russia, and we are also slowly working on Europe and will launch in the domestic market soon."

Roy further elaborated on the safety requirements for the shoes made for Russian soldiers. As per the publication, Roy said, "Their requirements are that shoes should be lightweight, slip-resistant, have special features in the sole, and withstand extreme weather conditions like -40 degrees Celsius. We manufacture the safety shoes, considering these conditions."

Roy also said that the managing director of the company wants to make a world-class facility in Bihar. Among the company's 300 empoyees, Roy said that 70 per cent are women.

The head of fashion development for the company, Mazhar Pallumiah, told ANI, "Our aim is to develop high-end shoes for international brands. We recently started negotiations with a Belgian company as well."

He also noted that foreign companies did have reservations about the quality of shoes his company could provide, but were reassured when the saw the sample.

On the war front, Russia and Ukraine today exchanged 95 prisoners of war from each side after the United Arab Emirates acted as an intermediary, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.

Russia's Defence Ministry, in a statement on the Telegram messaging app, said the returning Russian soldiers would undergo medical examinations in Moscow.

With Reuters inputs