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FICCI calls for enabling labour laws to boost textile & clothing industry and raise Indias share in world exports
Seeks Lowest Slab for Textiles Industry Under GST A long term trade strategy for textiles sector needed: FICCI New Delhi : FICCI has recommended the reform of the labour laws to boost textile & clothing industry and raise Indias share in world exports. These recommendations have been submitted to Mr. Ajay Shankar, Member Secretary, National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council and Chairman of Expert Group on National Textiles Policy constituted by Government of India. Assuming Indias GDP grows by 7% on an average over the policy period as per the scaled down estimates of Planning Commission and assuming that the domestic textiles industry also grows by 7%, it would mean that the textiles industry would be a $278 billion industry, of which exports would account for $145 billion, noted FICCI. To meet this target, Indian exports require to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15.1% over the 10 year period (assuming world exports in textiles and clothing grow by 5%). Indian exports would reach $145 billion by end of the policy period if we grow by 15%. As per the 12th Plan working group on textiles and apparel, the textiles sector will create an additional employment of 15 million by 2016-17, which means the sector can provide 30 million additional jobs by 2023. Given that textiles & clothing sector is a labour intensive sector, FICCI projects that it can provide employment to at least an additional 20 milTable : Trebling the share of India in World Exports Year 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 World Textiles Exports ($ Billion) 708 743.4 780.6 819.6 860.6 903.6 948.8 996.2 1046.0 1098.3 1153.3 1210.9 India's Exports ($ billion) 31 35.7 41.1 47.3 54.4 62.6 72.1 83.0 95.5 109.9 126.5 145.6 Prime Minister, is irregular and inadequate supply of skilled and unskilled labour owing to harvest and other seasons since the sector employs mainly migratory workforce. In such cases, providing affordable houses closer to factories will act as a major factor for retention of these workers for stable and longer periods. This will ensure uninterrupted production schedules. These accommodations called dormitories are well established norms in many countries including Singapore, Malaysia, China and more recently in Bangladesh. World over such facilities for migrant workers are being provided around manufacturing clusters. National Textiles Policy should provide for such housing for textile workers. On GST, Mr. Shishir Jaipuria, Chairman, FICCI Textiles Committee, said that the industry should be kept in the priority/lowest slab of GST as it provides a basic necessity to the masses with large scale employment potential. Currently, parts of the industry are VAT exempt and a large part of the indus-

Source : WTO and FICCI Estimation lion people from the current 45 million to 65 million by 2023. Textiles is a labour intensive sector. To make the sector achieve a high growth path, there is a need for enabling labour laws to achieve the desired targets. Currently, the sector has to comply with a number of archaic labour laws which are not so relevant in todays dynamic scenario. There is a need to relax certain provisions of the laws. The apparel and clothing industry which employs large number of people is considered the driver of growth for the whole value chain hence reforms are a must for garment manufacturing industry. Garment manufacturing is seasonal in nature and works on orders which are season specific, delivery schedules are hectic and have short lead time. Therefore, the industry requires large workforce in busy season and smaller workforce for other months. On the labour front, FICCI also added that one of the major concerns of manufacturers and also as identified by HLCM (High Level Committee on Manufacturing) chaired by the Honble NCM-JANUARY 2014 88

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try is kept out of excise duty. Any sudden increase in rates would destabilize the complete industry as has been in the past. Excise duty has been levied twice and then removed, after observing a negative impact on the industry, noted Mr. Jaipuria. FICCI has suggested that providing right kind of eco-system is the priority for making the Indian textiles sector globally competitive. There are more than hundred domestic textiles clusters (small and big) that have the capacity ranging from spinning to weaving and garmenting which require strong infrastructure support to make them competitive. The Government should provide assistance for upgradation of existing textile clusters for developing world class logistics, infrastructure and easy to do business facilities under its National Textiles Policy. FICCI has emphasized the need for India to have a long term trade strategy for its textiles sector for both offensive and defensive interest. Globally, the total textile and apparel trade has grown at a CAGR of 6.7% in the last 11 years, being valued at $706 billion with major markets being USA, Germany, Japan, China and UK. India has a share of 4% in global exports of textile and apparel. Indias product basket is majorly cotton focused, but the world trade in textile and apparel is tilted towards manmade textiles. Also, fibre consumption ratio in India is strikingly different from the world ratio. In India, consumption ratio between cotton and manmade fibres is 68:32 while it is almost 28:72 globally. This has led to Indias negligible presence in many highly traded product categories, which are man-made textiles based. Indias share is also very small in global trade of technical textiles, which is again majorly man-made textiles based. Further, the National Textiles Policy should eliminate long standing discrimination between cotton and manmade fibre on excise duty front, noted tile garments due to environmental concerns. Setting up of pollution free zones for textile processing will definitely help in increasing textiles and clothing exports from India. A separate scheme in this regard needs to be introduced, which provides additional support of Rs. 5 crores for each Park for setting up Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP). Further, water as a resource will be under pressure always. This will require constant innovation in waste water recycling, low water discharge or zero water discharge technologies (digital printing, finishing). This would entail additional cost especially for SMEs. In addition to subsidy under TUFS, the sector deserves additional concessions like increased rates of depreciation etc in order to encourage investments in the sector. FICCI emphasized that technical textiles is a major area and the Government should provide more thrust to this sector which has the potential to drive the growth of entire textile value chain in the country. Standards need to be formed on urgent basis for technical textiles in Geotex, Buildtex, Protex, Meditex, Mobiltex and Agrotex in view of health, safety and environment reasons. Already, some good work has been done with the support of BIS, TRAs and industry which needs to be taken forward. This may require some capacity building at standard setting level. Also, the Government regulation/guidelines are needed to encourage the production and consumption of certain technical textiles in India. The National Textiles Policy (NTP) 2013 should be all encompassing for the textiles value chain with an aim to do away with the fragmented structure of textile industry leveraging fully the integration available to us. It is seen that even countries that do not have domestically integrated textile value chain have done better than India. There is no reason for India not to surpass these countries with an integrated value chain.

Mr. Shishir Jaipuria Mr. Jaipuria. The excise duty structure on fiber and yarns be revisited and duties on man-made fibers/filament yarn should be brought down at par with cotton to bring fibre neutrality in the sector. In competing countries, there is no difference in excise duty between cotton and man-made fibres/filament yarns and India should be no exception to this. Hank Yarn Obligation could be phased out with a strategic roadmap for relocation of affected workers. This could be concomitant with the plan or roadmap for facilitating relocation of the workers employed in these sectors to higher value added or emerging sectors. Skills of these workers can be upgraded to be used for higher value added segments that face shortage of skills. Processing remains the weakest link in our textile value chain. Quality of fabric also remains an issue and many fabrics like spandex fabric, lingerie fabric, warp knitted fabric etc are either not available or are not adequate for the domestic industry demand. For processing, separate pollution free zones to be set up to increase consumption across the entire value chain from fiber to garments. At the moment due to absence of pollution free zones, value added in textiles sector is limited. Importers in developed countries like USA and EU demand value added ecological friendly texNCM-JANUARY 2014 89

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TEXPROCIL Awards 2012-2013 for Outstanding Export Performance

The Cotton Textile industry contributes a major share to Indias total industrial production & Indias export market. The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) recognizes the role played by the exporting community in developing and diversifying Indias exports of Cotton Textiles, every year, by granting Awards for Outstanding Export Performance. TEXPROCIL Export Awards 2012-2013 for outstanding export performance were distibuted at a grand function in Hotel Leela, Chennai in the august presence of Dr. Kavuru Sambasiva Rao, Honble Union Minister of Textiles. Shri Laxmi Narayanan, Vice President, Coignizant Technologies Ltd. and Shri A. B. Joshi, Textiles Commissioner were present as the Guests of Honour.

TEXPROCIL Export Awards 2012-2013 were distributed at the hands of Dr. Kavuru Sambasiva Rao, Union Minister of Textiles (4th from right) at a function held in Hotel Leela, Chennai. The event was graced by Shri Laxmi Narayanan, Vice President, Cognizant Technologies Ltd. (3rd from right) & Shri A. B. Joshi, Textiles Commissioner (5th from right). Seen in pic : TEAM WELSPUN receiving Special Gold Trophy for Highest Global Exports. Introduction The first in the series of such Annual Awards was instituted in the year 197576. Since then these awards have been well received and have acquired prestigious status. Winners of these awards are looked upon as La Creme De La Creme of the exporting community. Exporters keenly vie with each other to bag these prestigious awards every year. These coveted and prestigious awards, popularly known as Texprocil Awards, the world over have helped inculcate a spirit of healthy competition between exporters. Over the years, the scheme of Export Awards has undergone several changes to match the changing needs. This year also the Scheme of Texprocil Awards was modified with a view to giving encouragement to big as well as small exporters while recognizing excellence in exports of specific product groups within the overall categor y of Yarn, Fabrics and Madeups. All these product groups are categorized on the basis of Export Performance. The scheme of the awards is open to NCM-JANUARY 2014 90 all exporters registered with the Council and Export performance of only Cotton/Predominantly Cotton Textiles coming under the purview of the Council are considered in selecting the award winners. TEXPROCIL - The facilitator for growth in exports The Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council -TEXPROCIL, is the first export promotion council set up in India in the year 1954, and is responsible for promoting cotton textile exports. TEXPROCIL has become the international face of Indian textiles, a one

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point stop for those who wish to source textiles from India. It has 3500 members who are engaged in the exports of cotton textiles i.e. yarns, fabrics and Made ups including Home textiles. Last year the members of the Council exported close to US$ 10 Billion of textiles to major markets in the world including China. This year the council has targeted to export US$ 12 Billion and is confident of exceeding its target set once again. TEXPROCIL promotes expor ts through buyer seller meets, participation in trade fairs, in depth study and through leading delegations. TEXPROCIL assists the ministry in formulating policies to promote textile exports. About Award Function Every year the council recognizes the role played by exporters by giving out awards in different categories. This year the council is giving out 57 awards, in thirteen different categories, including the coveted Gold trophy for the highest global exports, common to all categories. TEXPROCILs awards are recognised world over by textile importers and hence exporters attach high importance to these awards. TEXPROCILs exports in 2012-13 were as under : Yarn : US$ 3.5 billion Fabric : US$ 2 billion Home textiles : US$ 4.4 billion EXPORT AWARDS 2012-2013 Function started with an invocation song sung by Ms. Pavitra Srinivasan followed by lighting of the Kuthuvilaku by Shri Laxmi Narayanan, Vice President, Cognizant Technologies Ltd. The function began with a dance recital by Padma Shri Ms. Shobana Chandrakumar and her students.

Seen along with TEXPROCIL Office bearers & other guests, Dr. Kavuru Sambasiva Rao, Union Minister of Textiles (3rd from left) releasing the Market Study Report. Welcome Address by Manikam Ramaswami, Chairman of TEXPROCIL and also Chairman of Loyal Textile Mills Ltd. The Chairman highlighted the need to restore the incentives on cotton yarn which have been withdrawn for inexplicable reasons by the Government. Further the need to treat cut and sew products meant for Homes on par with those used to drape the Humans was also emphasized. He also thanked the Honble Minister and Ministry officials for resolving several long pending issues and initiating stable policies that encourage competitiveness, besides bringing in optimism into the entire textile value chain. He complimented the ministry for show-casing the competitiveness of the industry through the recently concluded textile conclave. Indian exports suffer more due to its perception. It is not yet seen as a country with long term competitiveness due to policy aberrations of the past. There is an urgent need to create a positive perception and project the competitiveness to rapidly grow the exports and discourage creation of capacities in emerging textile geographies in spinning and fabric production, co-operate with India ( the most competitive manufacturer of fabrics and yarns ) to compete in garment making and home textiles. NCM-JANUARY 2014 91 Textile industry alone can create crores of jobs for uneducated, unskilled persons across India. Only export driven growth can enable textiles to have high double digit growth rates needed to create sufficient jobs and therefore urged exporters to fully take advantage of TEXPROCILs export promotion measures and grow Indias exports rapidly. Address by Guest of Honour Shri Laxmi Narayanan, Vice President, Cognizant Technologies Ltd. in his address applauded the champions of the industry present at the function. He termed TEXPROCILs achievement of over 10 billion in exports as very significant and suggested that instead of Y-O-Y the potential of industry should be taken in consideration for benchmarking the industry targets. Special Address by Union Textiles Minister There is ample opportunity for India to emerge a skilled manpower provider in the textile sector as the labour cost in China is increasing, according to Kavuru Sambasiva Rao, Union Textiles Minister. Presenting the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) awards, he said 96 per cent of Japans

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textile requirement was met through exports and 86 per cent from China. Stressing that the field was open to India, he wanted the corporate sector to support the skill-building measures of the government not only in textiles but in all sectors as the need for the skilled people in the country was likely to reach 75 million in 2025. When it comes to providing skills, I prefer the corporate sector to government agencies, he said, adding that the government was ready to provide incentives to the corporate companies for training programmes. Hon. Union Minister of Textiles distributed a total of 57 awards and also released the market report on Japan and Korea.Textiles Commissioner, Shri A B. Joshi received the first copy. Market report on Japan & Korea Japan and South Korea are amongst other lucrative markets with an aggregate share of 8.82% in the total world home textile imports. The current consumption of home textiles by both these countries is USD 10.6 Billion, of which 40% is met through imports. Their dependence on imports for these goods is expected to increase to more than 74% over the next five years. The favourable policy ecosystem with the enforcement of Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA) with these countries and a strong comparative advantage of having zero tariff duties for home textiles provides a huge opportunity for India. Concentrated effort is needed to boost exports in these markets through increased delegations, continuous presence at major trade fairs and greater B2B interactions. TEXPROCIL Market Report on Japan & Korea contributes to these broader objectives by providing a detailed analysis of demand, customer preferences, competitor positioning, appropriate trade models and distribu-

TEXPROCIL - CNBC TV18 Organize Textile Conclave 2013 - Brand India

CNBC TV18 under the aegis of Ministry Of Textiles hosted Textile Conclave 2013 Brand India in Delhi on December 2nd, 2013. The event saw industry stalwarts, policy makers participating and was an ode to the Indian textile industry which contributes 14% to industrial production, 4% to GDP and 27% to forex inflows while it constitutes 11% of the countrys total exports. The aim was to draw the blue print for this industry so that it can emerge as the number one textile player on the planet. The event was inaugurated by the Minister of Textiles, Dr. K. Sambasiva Rao, the Minister of State for Textiles, Mrs. Panabaaka Lakshmi, the Textiles Secretary, Mrs. Zohra Chatterji, the Textile Commissioner, Mr. Anil Joshi & the Managing Editor of CNBC TV18, Shireen Bhan. Speaking on the Textiles Conclave 2013 Dr. K S Rao, the Union Textiles Minister stated that, I am happy to participate in the Textiles Conclave. This is the golden era of textiles in India and we have to work to make India hub of Textiles exports. I dont think its difficult to achieve the number 1 position. We have the potential and capacity we need to just take care of skill training and power availability. Delivering the inaugural address Secretary Textiles, Smt. Zohra Chatterji stated that, we are building road map to move forward. The planned schemes are ready and we are going full way to implement it. We have a strong raw material base, skilled workforce and stringent compliant standards. Top brands and retails are eyeing India as a sourcing destination. We have a large skill base to meet the growing burgeoning demand the women needs to work for the longer hours and our role is to make this possible. The event highlight included panel discussion moderated by Ms. Shireen Bhan comprising eminent panelists like Shri Ajay Shankar, NMCC National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council; Shri A B Joshi, Textile Commissioner; Shri Manikam Ramaswami, Chairman Texprocil and CMD, Loyal Textile Mills Ltd., Shri Prem Malik, Chairman CITI; Shri S P Oswal, Chairman Vardhman Industries among others. Addressing the query on selling Indian textiles globally especially to Japan where India is having a free trade agreement with zero percent duty, Shri Manikam Ramaswami said that India has a very minimal market share of one percent although being cheaper than China by ten to fifteen percent. He also mentioned that Japanese buyers prefer doing business not with sellers but with potential partners i.e. they are ready to come and invest and train in a way that suits their needs. The Japanese, he further added are not prepared to invest unless they see you as a potential and sustainable business partner for the next ten years. In pronouncing his vision for the industry, Shri Ramaswami stressed on the need for strong policies that reward efficiencies. He expressed confidence that once these policies are in place the industry is quite capable of taking care of its needs. The event was telecast on CNBC - TV18 on 14, 15, 21, 28 & 29 December 2013. NCM-JANUARY 2014 92

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CNBC TV18 under the aegis of Ministry Of Textiles hosted Textile Conclave 2013 - Brand India in Delhi. The event was telecast on CNBC - TV18 on 14, 15, 21, 28 & 29 December 2013. Textiles Commissioner, Shri A B Joshi, in his remarks suggested on developing enablers to achieve competitive edge like TUF scheme, increasing cotton productivity and coordinated efforts by all stakeholders to enhance competitiveness. Industry base is strong but needs to be properly leveraged to achieve growth, he added. Few top member exporters of the Council were also recipients of the awards distributed at the Conclave. Vardhman Textiles Ltd. won the award for the largest producer of Cotton Yarn while Welspun India Ltd. got the same for Made-ups & Home Textiles. Loyal Textile Mills Ltd. won the award for the largest exporter of Cotton Knitted Fabrics while Welspun Global Brands Ltd. got the award for the largest exporter of Made-ups & Home Textiles. Bombay Dyeing & Mfg. Co. Ltd. won the largest domestic brand in Made-ups award and Raymond Ltd. got the largest domestic brand in textiles award. The Textile Conclave, succeeded in bringing together all the stake holders in the long and complex value chain. tion channels for home textile exports to Japan and South Korea. It is the outcome of an indepth market research undertaken by Athena Infonomics India Pvt. Ltd., as mandated by The Cotton Textile Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL). Galaxy of Award Winning Companies The Awards function saw a galaxy of VPs, CEOs and MDs of Award Winning companies present at the venue along with the members of Media and Press. The leading textile manufacturers and merchants received the various awards. Welspun Global Brands Ltd, Vardhaman Textiles, Alok Industries, Arvind Ltd, Winsome Textiles, Loyal Textiles, GTN Textiles , Premier Textiles, Paramount Textiles, Kikani Exports, Lahoti Overseas and

TEXPROCIL Export Awards 2012-2013 : Alok Industries Ltd. Nagareeka Exports were some of the recipients of the awards. All the segments of the industry were unanimous in recognizing the vast potential and competitive strength of the Indian textile industry as it marches ahead globally. NCM-JANUARY 2014 93

"In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield."
- Warren Buffett

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Petrapole, Benapole Land Customs Stations to be Operational Seven Days A Week
Major Relief to Exporters from Congestion on Bangladesh Border Petrapole and Benapole (Bangladesh side) Land Customs Stations will now be made operational 7 days a week from 1st January, 2014. This move came in the wake of Union Minister of Textiles Dr. K.S. Rao writing to Union Finance Minister Shri P .Chidambaram about the congestion at Bangladesh border. Various exporters had raised this issue with the Textiles Minister in a recent meeting. The move will ease off the way for trade between the two countries and it will especially benefit the textiles sectors of both the countries, said Dr. Rao. The Finance Ministry has taken measures to facilitate the trade at Petrapole including extended working hours for the functioning of Customs at Petrapole and aligning the weekly holiday with Bangladesh so as to provide more working days to the trade. The movement of trucks carrying export cargo is allowed up to the LCS of the importing country for discharge of cargo. Regular meetings are being held between the jurisdictional Commissioners of Customs of India and Bangladesh as well as meetings with trade at the border to address issues of concern to the trade. These steps are expected to ease out the traffic congestion to a large extent. The delay in movement of export cargo at Petrapole is primarily due to infrastructural inadequacies at LCS, Petrapole emerging out of road conditions, traffic congestion and lack of authorized parking facilities. These issues are being taken up with the district administration. To address these further, the Land Ports Authority of India is building an Integrated Check Post (ICP) incorporating state of the art infrastructural facilities at Petrapole, which is expected to be ready by operation in 2014 which will further reduce congestion and ensure smooth flow of goods being exported from India to Bangladesh. operate looms whereas easier earning options are available. The Government has been considering various ways to arrest this decline and has been implementing various developmental and welfare schemes to sustain the handloom sector. To improve the productivity and reduce the manual labour on loom, the Advisory Committee on Handloom Reservation Act, in its meeting held on August 10, 2012 had recommended the modifications in definition of handloom ashandloom means any loom, other than powerloom; and includes any hybrid loom on which at least one process for weaving requires manual intervention or human energy for production.

Status Quo in the Definition Of Handloom Under Handloom Reservation Act

The apprehension of a change in definition of handloom has triggered speculation and insecurity amongst a section of weavers and handloom activities and given a mistaken impression on handloom activists that Government has taken a decision to allow the introduction of automatic machines to replace handlooms and that the Government intends to change the definition of handlooms to include such mechanized looms. In this regard, it is clarified that no change is contemplated by Ministry of Textiles, in definition of handloom, which has been defined as any loom other than powerloom under the Handlooms (Reservation of Articles for Production) Act, 1985. Handloom weaving constitutes one of the richest and most vibrant aspects of the Indian cultural heritage. As per handloom census 2009-10, the handloom sector provides employment to 43.3 lakh weavers and allied workers whereas the number was 65 lakh in 1995-96. The reduction in number of handloom weavers has been a cause of concern for Government. The sector is facing constraints such as lack of technological upgradation, inadequate availability of inputs, nonavailability of adequate and timely credit, lack of contemporary designs etc. Further a trend is noticed that the younger generation is not willing to continue with this profession or be attracted to it owing to low generation of income and hard labour required to NCM-JANUARY 2014 94

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour also supported the amendment in definition of handloom in various meetings. However, the amendment of the definition has since been re-considered by the Government. It has also been opposed by handloom experts and civil society members who have said that this change in definition of handloom would gradually eliminate the difference between handloom and powerloom and lead to cornering of benefits meant for handloom weavers by the powerloom sector. Various aspects pertaining to amendment of the definition and other incidental issues has recently been studied in greater detail by a sub-committee of the Advisory Committee which was constituted for the purpose. The committee of officials comprising of representatives from various states, Textile Committee, Textile Commissioner, Powerloom division and Development Commissioner for handlooms have studied the matter in depth and submitted a report. The Sub-Committee while visiting different parts of the country examined various issues including different

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types of looms being operated by handloom weavers in handloom clusters across the country, the extent of modernization/mechanization being carried out in different parts of the country, scope for further improvement /upgradation of looms mechanically without use of power to reduce manual labour and to improve productivity without compromising the quality of handloom fabric and the possibility of replicating such interventions in other handloom clusters/pockets. The Sub-Committee submitted its report on 29th October, 2013 to Government. The Sub-Committee has recommended that in the process of weaving, the weaver does not use power and hence definition of handloom need not be changed and it should remain in the purest form.The Ministry of Textiles has accepted the report of the sub-committee and no amendment in the Handloom Reservation Actto change the definition of handloom is contemplated. The following modifications have been carried out in the existing scheme in the 12th Plan : 1. At present, 10 percent subsidy on mill gate price is payable to cotton yarn and domestic silk with quantity restrictions. Under the new scheme restriction for cotton yarn will be as follows: (i) up to and including 40s - 30 kg per loom/month (ii) above 40s - 10 kg per loom/ month. For domestic silk, quantity restriction will continue to be four kg per loom/month. 2. Along with hank yarn and domestic silk, 10% subsidy will also be applicable to wool for individual weavers & weavers cooperative societies only, with the following quantity limitation or maximum limit : Woollen yarn (below 10s NM) 50 kgs. per loom/month Woollen yarn (10s to 39.99s NM) 10 kgs. per loom/month Woollen yarn (40s NM & above) 4 kgs. per loom/month 3. To increase the coverage of primary weavers societies and individual weavers and also to introduce cash sale of yarn especially to small weavers instead of payment of advance to precede indenting and supply of yarn with a gap of about 15 to 45 days, National Handloom Development Corporation (NHDC) now proposes to open distribution centres/warehouses in various parts of the country. To begin with 10 such distribution centres are to be set up. 4. Service charges to NHDC are proposed to be enhanced by 0.5 percent in all the States. Background : The Government of India has been NCM-JANUARY 2014 95 implementing MGPS since 1992 for making yarn available to handloom weavers at mill gate price by reimbursing transportation charges to depot operating agencies, which are primary weavers cooperative societies, apex societies and other handloom organisations.

Textile Minister visits Sircilla power loom cluster for interaction with stakeholders
Launches Rs. 90 Crore Pilot Scheme of In-Situ Upgradation of Powerlooms Union Minister of Textiles Kavuri Sambasiva Rao - on December 24, 2013 - visited Sircilla powerloom cluster in Andhra Pradesh and announced several sops to the distressed power loom weavers of Sircilla to ensure production of value-added fabric, good profit and employment throughout the year. Dr. Rao launched a Pilot Scheme for In-Situ Upgrdation of plain powerlooms and Yarn Bank Scheme at Sircilla. During his launching address Dr. Kavuru Sambasiva Rao informed that though several large textile industries are getting benefit under Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) whereas the poor powerloom weavers having old plain powerlooms were not getting any financial assistance for modernizing the looms under TUFS. At present the above Pilot Scheme is introduced in six clusters viz. Sircilla of Andhra Pradesh, Malegaon and Nagpur of Maharashtra, Tanda of Uttar Pradesh, Burhanpur of Madhya Pradesh and Bhagalpur of Bihar. On seeing the success of the scheme the same will be implementing in all powerloom clusters of India thereby modernizing around 20 lakh powerlooms.

Implementation of Yarn Supply Scheme (YSS) during 12th Plan

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the continuation of the Mill Gate Price Scheme (MGPS) along with 10 percent subsidy component with modifications. The scheme is now renamed as the Yarn Supply Scheme (YSS). The plan outlay for YSS during the 12th Plan will be Rs.443 crore. The scheme will cover the weavers who are under privileged as also vulnerable groups, by providing them subsidized yarn so that they can compete with the powerloom and mill sector. The target for the 12th Plan will be to supply 3506 lakh kg yarn worth Rs.4364 crore. The target of providing service to beneficiaries under YSS has been accordingly fixed to serve all 23 lakh handloom units.

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The Yarn Bank Scheme for powerloom weavers is a long pending demand of various powerloom clusters. As per the Yarn Bank Scheme, launched by the Minister, Govt. of India will provide a corpus fund upto the extent of Rs.1Crore for the purchase of yarn by the Special Purpose Vehicle. Two Special purpose vehicle of Sircilla have submitted their proposal to the Minister for approval under the scheme. As per the Pilot Scheme for In-Situ upgradation of plain powerlooms Govt. of India shall provide financial assistance to the extent of 50% of the cost of the upgradation attachments/ kits, dobby and jacquard subject to maximum subsidy Rs. 15,000/- per powerloom and the maximum subsidy to a powerloom unit holding eight powerlooms would be Rs. 1,20,000/-. The existing plain loom may be upgraded with following additional features : 1. Weft stop motion. 2. Warp stop motion. 3. Semi-positive let off motion. 4. Efficient braking device. 5. Anti Crack device. 6. Replacement of metallic parts by self-lubricating nylon parts. 7. Mechanical Dobby. 8. Jacquard. Dr. Rao started the In-Situ upgraded demo powerloom at Sircilla and urged the powerloom weavers of Sircilla to see the functioning of the demo loom and modernize their plain powerlooms by availing benefits under the scheme. He distributed in principle sanction orders to powerloom entrepreneurs of Sircilla and informed that so far sanction orders have been issued for 6000 powerlooms in Sircilla. Dr. Rao informed that effective steps will be taken by the Ministry of Textiles for setting up of common facilities centers for Warping, Sizing, Processing and Yarn Bank. He assured NCM-JANUARY 2014 96

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for setting up of training centre under Integrated Skill Development Scheme of Govt. of India. He also assured that Health Insurance Scheme will be provided to all powerloom workers of Sircilla. He explained about Group work shed scheme and Mega cluster scheme for powerlooms. He informed that Ministry of Textiles will take necessary action for declaring Sircilla under Mega cluster scheme. Shri Ponnam Prabhakar, Member of Parliament, Karimnagar and Shri K. Taraka Rama Rao, MLA, Sircilla also addressed in the meeting. Shri A.B. Joshi, Textile Commissioner, Govt. of India in his introductory address indicated that by availing the In-Situ Upgradation Scheme the productivity and earnings of the powerloom weaver can be increased by 15% and in case of product diversification the earnings may increase up to 100%.

Textiles Minister Reviews the development of Sericulture Silk Industry at CSB, Bangalore
The Minister of Textiles Dr. K. Sambasiva Rao visited the Central Silk Board, Bangalore and held a review meeting with Shri N. S. Bisse Gowda, Chairperson, Smt. Ishita Roy, IAS, Member Secretary, Central Silk Board, Directors of CSBs Research Institutes, National Silkworm Seed Organization, and Senior officials of Central Silk Board, on 23rd December 2013 about the development of sericulture & silk industry in the country during the XII plan period. During his visit to Central Silk Board, Dr. Rao launched a 10 - ends concept Model of Automatic Silk Reeling Machine developed by Central Silk Technological Research Institute, (CSTRI) Central Silk Board, Bangalore. Based on this concept model 120 to 200 ends automatic silk reeling machines Implementation of In-Situ upgradation scheme and Launching of Yarn Bank Scheme at Sircilla.

Union Minister of Textiles Dr. K Sambasiva Rao reviewing the development of sericulture and silk industry with Shri N. S. Bisse Gowda, Chairperson and Smt. Ishita Roy, IAS, Member Secretary NCM-JANUARY 2014 97

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will be developed and this will help in reduction of manpower and improving the quality of raw silk equivalent to imported raw silk. The Minister appreciated the scientists of CSTRI CSB Bangalore for their contribution in developing innovative technologies and particularly machineries like : (a) Wet reeling machine for Tasar,(b) Vacuum permeation cooking unit for mulberry silk reeling (c) Solar power operated eri spinning machine and (d) Mechanical Tasar cocoon sorting machine. These machines will be useful in increasing the productivity, reduction of drudgery and improvement in quality of silk. The Minister suggested that solar operated spinning devices have to be provided to a larger number of beneficiaries in the north-eastern regions. The Minister insisted the need for taping resources from RKVY and MGNREGS for sericulture expansion in potential areas. While reviewing the sericulture & silk development in the country, the Minister aspired that the raw silk production in the country should be doubled to 46,000 m.tons during the terminal year of XII plan period i.e., 2016-17 with an annual growth rate of 20 25 % in silk production. Further he added that the area under mulberry cultivation should be raised from the existing mulberry area of 1,96,000 hectares to 3,00,000 hectares by the end of XII plan period. Keeping in view of expansion of the mulberry acreage and also the increase in silk production during the XII plan period, the Minister insisted that Central Silk Board & its Research Institutes should conduct more and ---------------------------------------------------> Union Minister of Textiles visiting the ISO 9001:2008 certified Silkworm Seed Production Centre of NSSO, CSB, Bangalore along with Shri N. S. Bisse Gowda, Chairperson and Smt. Ishita Roy, IAS, Member Secretary, CSB, Bangalore. NCM-JANUARY 2014 98

Dr. Rao keenly observing the 10-end concept model of automatic reeling machine

Demonstration of solar powered automatic silk spinning device

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more training programmes covering larger number of beneficiaries involving various sericulture activities namely; plantation development, disease management, silkworm seed production, quality cocoon production, and post-cocoon activities like silk reeling, spinning, weaving, processing, design development and by product development activities which would ensure self employment in the silk industry to boost their economic gains and returns. Union Minister of Textiles accompanied by Shri N. S. Bisse Gowda, Chairperson, CSB and Smt. Ishita Roy, IAS, Member Secretary Central silk Board visited the ISO 9001: 2008 certified Silkworm Seed Production Centre, Bangalore. Dr. B.S. Angadi, Director, NSSO, briefed the Minister about the various activities of NSSO in production of quality Bivoltine Silkworm Seed as per ISO standards. The Minister appreciated the role played by the Scientists and Technical staff of NSSO. Smt. Ishita Roy, IAS, Member Secretary, CSB in her presentation explained that the mandate of Central Silk Board is mainly on Research and Development activities related to sericulture and silk industry in the country. She briefed the Minister about the current status of the sericulture and silk industry in the country. She further added that the CSBs Scientists have evolved high yielding mulberry varieties and silkworm races, eco friendly farming techniques, mulberry and silkworm crop protection measures, mechanization in pre and postcocoon sectors to reduce labour dependency in sericulture. Dr. B. Saratchandra, Director (Tech), Dr. Arindham Basu, Director, CSTRI, Shri K.K. Shetty, Joint Secretary (Tech), Shri Keshav Kumar, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Shri K. Sukumar Menon, CEO, SMOI, and other senior officers of Central Silk Board attended the meeting.

PSG-SIMA Textile Technical Training Institute to bridge skilled manpower gap

Faced with a serious gap of skilled workers in the textile sector, the second largest employer after agriculture, two leading groups of industries have joined hands to set up a textile technical training institute in Coimbatore. The PSG-SIMA Textile Technical Training Institute, the plaque for which was unveiled by union textile minister K Sambasiva Rao recently, would offer a two-year programme for spinning technicians, textile mechatronics and weaving technicians, L Gopalakrishnan, Managing Trustee, PSG Institutions said. It will have short, medium and long-term courses for spinning and weaving technicians, electricians, maintenance supervisors, electrical supervisors and senior level executives in the area of mechanical, electrical and electronics and maintenance, including air engineering, he said in a release. The training program has been designed based on the industry demand in various segments and emphasis will be on measurable outcomes, wherein it would be ensured that all successful trainees are certified by empanelled certification agency, he said. The programme is aimed at addressing shortage of trained manpower and to tap the huge employment potential of the sector to achieve the aim of inclusive growth through economic empowerment, he said. While PSG Institutions provided the land, building and other infrastructure, estimated at around Rs four crore, city based leading textile machinery manufacturers Lakshmi Machine Works donated the entire range of spinning machinery worth Rs two crore. SIMA (Southern India Mills' Association) will provide the technical training know how and coordinate with members mills and arrange for sponsoring trainees to various courses run by the institute, Gopalakrishnan said. Stating that there is a serious gap between training needs of various segments of textile industry and that given by the existing training institute in terms of volume and course content,he said the main objective of the institute was to provide trained manpower to the industry with special emphasis on advanced machinery and production methodology.

India's Textile production expected to more than double by 2020

Local textile machinery manufacturers should take up production of shuttleless looms Indias annual production of textile goods is expected to increase to $ 220 billion by 2020 from the current NCM-JANUARY 2014 99

level of $ 90 billion, according to Union Textile Minister Kavuru Sambasiva Rao. He was in Coimbatore recently to participate in the sixth convocation of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International School of Textiles and Management, to inaugurate the PSG-SIMA Textile Technical Training Institute and release the SIMA GKD-1 cotton seed. He told presspersons that China has

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33 per cent share in the global textile market and Indias share is just 4.5 per cent. It is said that with higher wage cost, China is diverting its focus to other sectors. This is an opportunity for Indian manufacturers. The Ministry is ready to support the industry in training initiatives. It is also focusing on modernisation of the powerloom sector. The country has 23 lakh powerlooms and just 1.05 lakh shuttleless looms. The industry needs to import shuttleless looms and importing 20 lakh looms will be worth $ 400 billion. Hence, local textile machinery manufacturers should take up production of shuttleless looms. It will reduce the cost of the machinery too. The industry should collaborate with the developed countries for technology and the Government will extend support. Industry should take up research and development and skill training. Associations such as SIMA should form joint ventures with overseas companies for testing and certification facilities. B.K. Krishnaraj Vanavarayar, former chairman of Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) and Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), said that the industry needs raw material, technology, trained manpower and policy support from the government for growth and development. Sanjay Jayavarathanavelu, Chairman and Managing Director of Lakshmi Machine Works, said that Coimbatore is known for the ecosystem that supports the textile industry. The growth started several decades ago with cotton cultivation and development of the ginning industry. L. Gopalakrishnan, Managing Trustee of PSG & Sons Charities, said that there is a gap between training needs of different segments of the textile industry and the training provided. T. Rajkumar, chairman of SIMA, said the industry needs consistency in

Union Minister of Textiles Kavuru Sambasiva Rao (second right) takes a look at the SIMA's GKD-1 BT cotton plant, the seeds of which were released by him in Coimbatore recently. policy. The Government should release subsidy under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme for the September quarter at the earliest. Earlier, speaking at the convocation he said that students should be encouraged to be innovative. The institute should have more overseas collaborations, practical training, and courses. Students should design innovative machinery and the industry should support them. This will bring down the production cost and make the industry competitive. Indias share in global textile trade is expected to increase to 15 per cent in two years. He said the Ministry has appealed to the Centre to set up warehouses in Latin American countries so that Indian exporters can store their goods there for supply in buyers in these countries. der the North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) for modernisation of equipment and other infrastructure for the women weavers of the state. The NERTPS was launched by Union Textiles Minister Dr K S Rao at Delhi during a meeting of senior representatives from all the North Eastern states. The broad objective of the North East Textile Promotion Scheme is to develop and modernise the textile sector in the North East Region by providing the required Government support in terms of raw material, seed banks, machinery, common facility centres, skill development, design and marketing support etc. The specific objectives of the scheme include increase in the value of textile production, technology upgradation, improvement in design capability, diversification of product lines and value addition, better access to domestic and export markets, clusterisation and improvement in labour productivity, market access & market promotion. The Scheme will cover all textile subsectors, the traditional VSE sectors

North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki has urged the Union Ministry of Textiles to allocate funds unNCM-JANUARY 2014 100

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of Handlooms, Handicrafts, Sericulture and Jute and allied fibres as well as the Powerloom sector and the Garmenting & Made Up sector. Infrastructure such as roads, power, water supply, construction of office buildings etc. will not be funded under the scheme/projects. However, infrastructure which form an integral part of the project or are critical/ crucial to the successful implementation of the project may be permitted. While emphasising the fact that the new scheme was ideal for the women weavers of the state, Tuki during the meeting highlighted the fact that the women weavers of the state have been historically producing traditional garments which are rich in style and design. Special project for Up-gradation of Handlooms in NER As per the handloom Census 200910, there are 23.77 lakh handlooms in the country, of which 16.47 lakh handlooms (69.28%) are in NER. Out of the total handlooms in the NER, 8.60 lakh handlooms (52.21%) are domestic handlooms i.e. the weavers are producing fabric for their own consumption. In order to raise the standard of living

Arunachal & Meghalaya to launch pilot projects on geo textiles

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki and his Meghalaya counterpart Mukul Sangma were jointly briefed about the benefits and potential of geo textiles based activities in the north eastern states by leading government and industry experts at New Delhi.

In a comprehensive presentation given by representatives of union Ministry of Textiles, National Jute Board, Ernst and Young (Business Advisory Firm) and Ahmedabad Textile Industry Research Association (ATIRA) recently, the benefits of the use of geo textiles in the infrastructure sector, anti erosion and flood protection, irrigation, disaster mitigation and avenues for entrepreneurship development in the sector were highlighted. The special briefing came in the wake of a recent policy initiative by the central government to extend financial support to geo textile based projects to promote ecologically balanced techniques in various sectors ensuring minimum environmental impact. Both the chief ministers agreed to the suggestion to take up select pilot projects in the states with assistance from the Centre within this financial year. In this connection, an expert team would visit both the states to work out the modalities for the implementation framework within this month.

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of the weavers by having more earnings and also to contribute significantly in the development of handlooms of NER, there is need to up-grade the existing handlooms and also, to commercialize these handlooms to produce newly developed/diversified the product range so that these are not only sold outside the NER but also abroad. Under the proposed scheme for NER, funding for technological up-gradation of the handlooms, dobby, jacquard and accessories will be provided to the extent of 90% of the cost of the handloom by the GoI and remaining 10 % by the Implementing Agency/ beneficiary. The cost of handloom would be upto Rs. 20,000/-. Dobby, jacquard and accessories, wherever required will also be eligible for assistance @ upto Rs. 8,000 per jacquard, @ upto Rs. 5,000 per dobby and other accessoaries @ upto Rs. 4,000/- per loom. "Our weavers are expert and capable of producing competitive products for the national as well as the international markets," Tuki said while seeking adequate support from the Central government. The chief minister also stressed on the Skill Development component of the NERTPS so as to benefit local youths who can not only gain expertise through training and employment but also would later be in a position to take up entrepreneurial ventures in the sector. The skill development outlay of the scheme would be aligned with the CM's Skill Development Mission which will benefit a sizable population of youth in the coming years," he pointed out. Rao assured Tuki that he would provide adequate funds for not only training and employment, but also for the creation of physical infrastructure to cater to the needs of the youth of the state.

Himachal Pradesh losing its shine as a favoured investment destination thanks to the discontinuation of central excise benefit
The discontinuation of the Central Excise exemption, a major allurement of the Central industrial package, is being reflected in the industrial growth of the state as several units are winding up their operations. The countrys second largest paint unit, Asian Paints (India) Limited, appears to have set the pace after closing its Baddi unit while several other units are following suit. Investors had availed the benefit of the Central Excise exemption till March 2010 and all industries which were set up from January 2003 to March 2010 were exempted from paying this tax. This led to huge profits for the units in Himachal vis--vis their counterparts in the non-tax exempt states where the Central Excise ranging from six to 13 per cent was being paid. With the 10-year period coming to an end, investors were seeing a little merit in staying in Himachal and paying the Central Excise at a rate of 13 per cent for food and other products and six per cent for pharmaceutical products. With several units shifting their high value products to other states, the scope of expansion has reduced further. Barely 14 new units had come forward to invest in the state in the past one year while 48 existing ones had sought approval for expanding their units. While a key textile unit had postponed their Rs 50 crore investment plans and had shifted their proposed Rs 800 crore investment to Gujarat, the demand for industrial plots auctioned by the HP State Industrial Development Corporation had declined to a trickle. The announcement of restoration of the transport subsidy and the Central investment subsidy for four years by Union Industries and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma had failed to be notified. Investors were now waiting for some sops in the new industrial policy which the state government is likely to announce soon. According to the Himachal Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industries, industries are facing many problems right from procuring raw material to the transportation of the finished product. After the announcement of package ion 2003, state industries department had approved 1,039 new investment and 167 expansion proposals in medium and large scale sector while under the small scale industries (SSI) category, 14,616 new investment and 259 expansion proposals were approved up to March 31, 2012, with combined envisaged investment of Rs 47,631.84 crore and employment potential of 5,27,231 persons. While Central Excise Duty was withdrawn on March 31, 2010, Income Tax Exemption was withdrawn on March 31, 2012 and Capital Investment Subsidy ended on January 6, 2013. According to sources, Himachal Pradesh has over 38,000 industries of which 90% come under the small and micro enterprises category. NCM-JANUARY 2014 102

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