§1What this business is
Dhoop batti differs from agarbatti: it is a thick, slightly damp stick or cone of combustible paste with no bamboo core, burnt mainly at havans and pujas. Eucalyptus and tulsi leaves are cut, dried and powdered; guggal, cascalia and jigat powder are mixed with DEP oil; dhoop wood, charcoal and groundnut-shell powder are blended in; an edge-runner turns it all into a sticky paste with perfume and plasticiser; a cutting machine forms the sticks, which are packed in 20 g, 50 g and 100 g boxes.
Capacity: 128 kg a day, 38,400 kg a year; 60% use in year 1.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
Someone with links to puja-goods wholesalers and temple-town markets.
Who it is not for
Someone who cannot build a brand or a re-packer network.
Advantages
- Steady religious demand all year, peaks at festivals
- Low machinery cost (₹4.40 L)
- Bulk sales to re-packers as well as own brand
- Good margin in the report (year-1 net profit ₹8.00 L)
Drawbacks
- Perfume compound is the biggest cost (₹7.20 L a year at full capacity)
- Many local brands compete on price
- Smoke and dust need ventilation
- Some dhoop-tree resins are scarce due to deforestation (report)
Skills you need
- Fragrance blending
- Paste consistency and cutting
- Packing and branding
- Selling to puja-goods wholesalers
Why difficulty 2/5: Simple machines and process; brand and distribution decide success.
§3Market
Who buys
- Households for puja and havan
- Temples and religious ceremonies
- Local vendors who buy in bulk and repack
How it sells
- Puja-goods wholesalers
- Bulk sales to repackers
- Own brand in small packs (20 g, 50 g, 100 g)
Good to know
- Dhoop batti is popular in ritual ceremonies like havan and is also sold in bulk (report).
- Fragrances like panch dham, kesar and nag champa are common (report).
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Roller mill machine | 1 | ₹40,000 |
| Leaf cutting machine | 1 | ₹25,000 |
| Water bath (mixing machine) | 1 | ₹10,000 |
| Powder mixing machine (ball mill) | 1 | ₹50,000 |
| Edge runner machine | 1 | ₹1.50 lakh |
| Pulveriser | 1 | ₹1.00 lakh |
| Oil storage tanks | 10 | ₹10,000 |
| Laboratory equipment | 1 lot | ₹25,000 |
| Installation of plant and machinery (10%) | 1 lot | ₹30,000 |
From: PMEGP sample project report — Dhoop Batti (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)
- Compound of perfumes720 kg a year at ₹1,000 a kg (₹7.20 L) at full capacity
- Charcoal powder1,800 kg at ₹250 a kg
- DEP (diethyl phthalate) oil3,600 litres at ₹100 a litre
- Sandalwood powder, guggal, cascalia powder360 kg each at ₹600, ₹200 and ₹130 a kg
- Dhoop wood, jigat powder, groundnut shell, eucalyptus / tej patta leaves3,600 kg at ₹40; 1,080 kg at ₹25; 9,000 kg at ₹6; 18,000 kg at ₹3
- Packaging boxes and corrugated boxes9,00,000 boxes at ₹0.75 and 7,200 cartons at ₹25
From: PMEGP sample project report — Dhoop Batti (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)
In our raw material database
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam
- GST
- No-objection certificate from the State Pollution Control Board (report)
- Legal Metrology packaged commodity registration
- Fire safety NOC
§6Schemes & subsidies
- PMEGPCentralActive15–35% subsidy
- MudraCentralActiveLoan up to ₹20 lakh, no collateral
- CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore
- Stand-Up IndiaCentralClosed₹10 lakh – ₹1 crore loan
PMEGP, MUDRA and CGTMSE fit the ₹13 L project; Stand-Up India for SC/ST/women founders.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Samadhan report: plant & machinery ₹4.40 L + furniture ₹0.50 L + pre-operative ₹0.44 L + working capital ₹7.66 L = ₹13.00 L; building 2,000 sq ft rented/owned, not costed.
Working capital: Working capital ₹7.66 L (bank ₹6.90 L) — 30 days of raw material and 30 days of finished goods.
Year not printed on the sample report — check current machinery prices.
§8Export potential
Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export
Export council / board: Not verified yet
- HS codes are from the WCO HS 2022 list; confirm the 8-digit ITC(HS) line with DGFT or your customs broker.
- You need an Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT before the first shipment.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Perfume and charcoal price rises
- Fake or adulterated look-alikes
- Fire risk from combustible stock
- Seasonal stock build-up
§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan
A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.
- Days 1–30: Visit a working dhoop batti making unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam, GST), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
- Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.
§11Who to connect with
Associations, clusters and training institutes — the directory is being built. Connect
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Dhoop Batti Making?
DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.
¶Sources
Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.