India’s exports of bedspreads, in value terms, have seen a phenomenal rise in the last decade. Shipments of bedspreads from India in 2015 were 70 per cent of world exports during the same period. However, major exports from India are still coming from the unorganised sector. Bedspreads are a significant foreign exchange earner for the country. It is one of the few export products where China lags behind India. While China specialises only in machine-made items, India does both machine and handmade items.

With regards to availability of raw material, India is self-reliant. However, a lot of technology upgradation in textile mills is needed – for example in the quality of fabrics used, quality of velvet or cotton. In the case of silk, it’s imported from China, hand worked on domestically, and then made export-ready. Hence there is a need to improve the quality of fabrics used. The recently-announced Rs 6,000 crore special package for the textile and apparel sector may be of help.

Manufacturers feel FTAs, such as an agreement with the EU, will boost exports. They believe the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme is a good scheme but has to be properly implemented. GST is also seen as helping to minimise costs on many fronts.