New Delhi (NVI): Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani today announced that the Textile Ministry is working on a structure to roll out a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for technical textiles and man-made fibre (MMF) segment.
Addressing a ASSOCHAM Foundation Week Programme 2020, Irani said, “We are currently on the anvil of also bringing to the fore the new Indian textile policy, the last time India had a textile policy was two decades ago.”
The minister also highlighted the impact of agricultural reforms on Indian industry and said, “The government in a determined effort has ensured that the MSP operations undergo with the help of technology and those who participate in the MSP operation receive direct benefit transfer of their funds in to their bank accounts.”
Speaking on the theme of programme, ‘Future lies in the past – Leveraging India’s embedded knowledge to pivot the country’s growth story,’ the minister informed, “In 2013-14, in the cotton segment, the MSP operations were merely worth Rs 90 crore while last year the MSP operations in the cotton segment alone breached a value in total of Rs 28,500 crore.”
This season, in the cotton segment MSP operations worth Rs 14,659 crore have already been undertaken and 9.63 lakh farmers producing cotton in the country have directly received into their bank accounts an amount of Rs 11,799 crore, this is done in only two months, she was quoted as saying in the official statement.
Irani added that this means, when we look at the policy reforms, the idea called AatmaNirbhar Bharat cannot come to a fruition when we work in silos. “So while on one hand the government of undertakes agricultural reforms, on the other hand we leverage technology to provide farm support and undertake MSP operations.”
The minister further stated, if you look at extra-long stable cotton, we currently produce only four lakh bales.
Looking at the agricultural reforms, if the industry conjoins its efforts with farming community and “we bring up the potential growth of production of ELS cotton from four lakh bales to 50 lakh bales, then the impact on the Indian cotton textiles industry will be such that we will increase our businesses from the current USD 18 billion to USD 80 bn, that is the potential that needs to be leveraged and explored,” she said.
However, speaking about agricultural reforms she underlined that when reform takes place in one segment, its impact is determined across the value chain of Indian economy.
“When agricultural reforms came into being, it was a contribution of dialogues and deliberations that have been undertaken for 19 years across industries, agriculture sector, farmer organisations and specialists who want to leverage technology in the field of agriculture so that potential benefit is accrued not only by farmers but also industry and citizens at large,” she said.
The minister further noted, India has become the second largest manufacturer and exporter of personal protective equipment (PPE).
“When Covid-19 pandemic hit Indian shores, not many across the globe were confident of India’s response, one of the greatest examples of Indian resilience was given by the Indian textiles industry in the manufacturing of PPE suits, provision for which was among the consistent demands of frontline workers and the medical community was across the world,” Irani added.
She said that while the textiles industry was not prepared for, but it rose to this challenge. “It was an effort which involved almost all ministries and industry segments in support of Indian textiles industry.”
Speaking at the virtual event, ASSOCHAM President Niranjan Hiranandani assured industry’s full support to the government to reach the goals of becoming an AatmaNirbhar Bharat and USD 5 trillion economy.
Vineet Agarwal ASSOCHAM senior VP, also recalled similar sentiments and lauded the minister for being supportive to Indian industry.
The government has launched the Production Linked Incentive Scheme (PLI) to attract diversification, investment and growth in the man-made fibre (MMF) and technical textiles segments, the statement said.
This scheme is extended for 10 key specific sectors, of which Textile is one of the sectors and has been allocated Rs 10,683 crore of the total estimated worth of Rs 1.46 lakh crore mainly for MMF and technical textile segment, it added.
-RJV
