Textiles Policy to address key issues of sector: Gangwar

The new National Textiles Policy is expected to address many critical issues facing the sector and steps like labour reforms, skill upgradation and faster customs clearances will help manufacturing become globally competitive, Union Minister Santosh Gangwar said today.
An expert panel constituted by the government last year had submitted the draft of the new National Textiles Policy, which aims to achieve USD 300 billion exports by 2024-25 and create additional 35 million jobs by attracting investments.
Stressing that the Textiles Ministry needs to create jobs and upgrade skills of workers, Gangwar at a Ficci conference here said: "Unfortunately, in this country we have more engineers but there is woeful shortage of skilled people."

Gangwar added the Ministry was ensuring that work on 20 textile parks is expedited and the technology upgradation plan is given a fillip through investment of Rs 4,000 crore.
DIPP Secretary Amitabh Kant was of the view that the government needs to completely remove service tax for the textiles sector for five years to ensure that it remains competitive in the global market and penetrates new ones.
Elaborating on other measures, Kant said the government must enter into a free trade pact (FTA) with the EU, restore interest rate subvention, identify new ports for expediting the process of customs clearance and derive a competitive labour cost to stay relevant in the market.

He cautioned that the textiles sector was bound to lose out markets to countries such as Bangladesh and Taiwan if it fails to bring a concentrated and integrated approach in its outlook.

Keeping in view the various changes in the textile industry on the domestic and international fronts and the need for a road map for the textile and apparel industry, the Ministry had initiated the process of reviewing the National Textile Policy, 2000.
The draft of Vision, Strategy & Action Plan for Indian Textiles & Apparels (2024) was earlier put up on the website of the Ministry for inviting online suggestions.

The government is in the process of finalising it for seeking the Cabinet approval.
The new improved Policy aims to address concerns of adequate skilled work force, labour reforms, attract investments in the textile sector, and to provide a future road map for the textile and clothing industry.