Coimbatore textile association urges federal government for policy support to boost exports

The Indian Textile Traders’ Federation (ITF) has suggested that the Ministry of Textiles consider providing policy support to leverage the opportunities created by the China Plus One policy adopted by Western buyers.

Prabhu Dhamodharan, coordinator of ITF, said the delegation recently submitted a report titled “Opportunities and Challenges for the Indian Textile and Apparel Sector” to Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh.

Currently, monthly apparel exports from India stand at $1.5 billion, compared to $12 billion from China. The Indian apparel and textile sector should focus on scale, competitiveness, specialization, integration and market diversification, the report said.

The government should support and encourage a ‘ready-to-cut fabric’ ecosystem in India to make the garment sector, largely comprised of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), more efficient and cost-competitive. A semi-integrated and integrated manufacturing ecosystem needs to be developed to meet bulk garment orders. “To capture a larger market share from the current 2% in the US multi-fabric garment (MMF) market, which is valued at $35 billion, we need to create knowledge partnerships with countries specialising in MMF and conduct a similar exercise in Indian clusters,” it said.

The ITF suggested that the government select five exporters from five major textile clusters and help them diversify into non-traditional markets. Another area to focus on is cotton yield, the report said.

According to the ITF, the minister announced actions aimed at increasing exports of textiles and clothing.