| |
India:Plans to rev up textile industry |
|
2004-10-14
|
 |
Knowing well that the phasing out of quotas by the year end will bring revolution in the Indian textile industry, the Ministry of Textiles has taken measures to ensure the industry gets support it requires to enable India stand up in the global textile trade.
A three-pronged strategy consisting fiscal, investment and providing competitive edge through technological upgradation to entail all round growth and consolidation of the textile and clothing industry to face global competition next year, has been drawn by the Textiles Ministry.
Elaborating on measures taken, Mr Wajahat Habibullah, Textiles Secretary said the Government had provided tax incentive with the announcement of optional CENVAT (Central Value-Added Tax) chain being extended to the entire textile industry excepting the manmade fibres sector.
Commenting on the discriminatory treatment to the manmade fibres industry, Habibullah said, "We have also received representations. We are working with the Ministry of Commerce and Finance to see that any discrepancy that may be or disharmony that may be, are now addressed in the next Budget."
He said though the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFs) was not being utilized due to tax disincentives and quota systems, adding "now that the quota system is set to go, we are persuading the people to invest in the industry so as to be able to compete."
Underscoring the importance of certain schemes for exporting quality textiles and clothing, Habibulah called for extending them further down the line in developing consolidated areas with common facilities so that the unit cost of operating units from these areas would drastically come down, improving the competitiveness of the industry.
Investment in textile industry across the board has had gone up, he said.
He conveyed that the Textiles Ministry was working in tandem with the Ministry of Commerce and External Affairs to secure a level playing field abroad. He also cited the US example of according preferential treatment to select partners by supplying them raw materials in return for finished products from them, and subsidising their own textile industry through backdoor.
“We are aware all of this and taking it up with the US Congress with the Ministry of External Affairs trying to overcome this,” he stated.
"We are tying to see how to modernise even revivable mills as all their equipment is completely outdated. As it is a question of modernisation and how do we do that, it is left to a Group of Ministers to find a solution," Habibullah said about revival of NTC Textile Mills.
The Government is examining the possibility of reviving some of the jute mills, he also informed.
Speaking about the state of handloom industry, the Textiles Secretary said, "The handloom industry is not being run the way the industry should be running with handlooms being highly exploited by a group of people. How to make handloom profitable is going to be a focus," Habibullah said. |
|
|
|
|
|
浙公網安33010602010414
