India is ranked among the top textile exporting countries in the world with a share of approximately 4 per cent of global textiles and apparel exports, according to information tabled in Parliament on Friday The export of Textiles and Apparel, including Handicrafts, increased by 7 per cent in April-December 2024 compared with the same period of the previous year with the US, the EU and the UK accounting for a 53 per cent share in total exports in FY 2023-24, Minister of State for Textiles Pabitra Margherita said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
The government is implementing various schemes to promote Indian textiles. The major initiatives include PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel (PM MITRA) Parks Scheme to create a modern, integrated, world-class textile infrastructure; Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme focusing on MMF Fabric, MMF Apparel and Technical Textiles to boost large-scale manufacturing and enhancing competitiveness; National Technical Textiles Mission focusing on Research Innovation and Development, Promotion and Market Development; SAMARTH – Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector with the objective providing demand-driven, placement oriented, skilling programme.
Silk Samagra-2 for comprehensive development of the sericulture value chain and the National Handloom Development Programme for end-to-end support for the handloom sector has also helped to promote exports. Besides, the Ministry of Textiles is also implementing the National Handicrafts Development Programme and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme for the promotion of handicrafts, the minister said.
The Indian textiles industry is one of the largest in the world with a large raw material base of natural fibre, including cotton, silk, wool, and jute as well as manmade fibre and manufacturing strength across the value chain from fibre to fabric to garments, he pointed out. With a view to ensuring a consistent supply of cotton in the country and having a sustained interest of farmers in cotton cultivation, the Government of India is declaring a Minimum Support Price (MSP) of cotton every year.
This mechanism ensures that farmers receive a fair remunerative price for their produce in the event market prices of cotton fall below the MSP rates and also facilitates the availability of cotton at competitive prices, the Minister said. He also pointed out that the customs duty on Extra-Long Staple (ELS) Cotton has been reduced to nil with effect from February 20, 2024. Under the India-Australia ECTA, 51,000 tonnes of duty-free ELS Cotton can be imported.
To increase its export potential, India has so far signed 14 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), including recently concluded agreements with UAE, Australia and TEPA with EFTA countries comprising Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein; and six Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) with various trading partners, he added. The government is also implementing the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) scheme for apparel in order to enhance competitiveness by adopting the principle of zero-rated exports.
Further, textile products not covered under the RoSCTL scheme are covered under the Remissions of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) along with other products. In addition, the government provides financial support to various Export Promotion Councils and Trade Bodies under the Market Access Initiative Scheme implemented by the Department of Commerce for organising and participating in trade fairs, exhibitions, buyer-seller meets, etc., at national and international levels to boost export, the Minister added.
