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The Indian Silk Export Promotion Council (ISEPC) has appointed Satish Gupta of Moda Cocktail, Noida as its new Chairman. Earlier, he served as vice chairman of ISEPC. Besides, Bimal Mawandia of Vineetaz Exports, Gurgaon has been elected as the vice chairman of the Council. Both were elected at a meeting of the administration committee of the Council held recently in Hyderabad.
Gupta is optimistic about the growth of silk export industry as he says that his top priority would be to enhance the silk export from India. He hopes despite ups and downs, the Council will be able to achieve annual export of $500 million of silk products in next two years. And for this, he expected full cooperation of Indian silk industry and the Ministry of Textiles.
The ISEPC is a 33-year-old not-for-profit organisation under the Companies Act duly sponsored by the Ministry of Textiles. It has a membership of 853 regular exporters of Silk products, while more than 1,800 exporters are registered with the Council.
Textiles minister Smriti Irani laid the foundation stone of National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) centre. She announced that the Union government would assist Haryana in developing silk weaving units in Panipat, Ambala, Sirsa and Panchkula.
The minister said both Central and state governments would make efforts in these four districts in the next year. Describing textile as the second largest employment-giving sector after agriculture, she said that since the Haryana government had received investment proposals worth Rs 7 lakh crore from prospective investors, the Union government would give all kinds of support for execution of the agreements Haryana had entered into for development of textile industries.
The NIFT centre would be completed in two years and students enrolled there would get guidance from international experts as the centre has an agreement with 32 global institutes. It would come up in an area of more than 10 acre in Panchkula at a cost of Rs 100 crores. As many as six regular degree courses would be offered by the institute. The upcoming centre would cater to the needs of 230 students every year out of which 20 per cent seats would be reserved for the domiciles of Haryana.
Thanks to the safety improvement and increased production capacity, Bangladesh’s RMG exports to the global market rose by over 9 per cent to over $26 billion in the 11 months of the soon-lapsing year. However, growth is less than required to attain the $50 billion export target by 2021 as the sector needs over 12 per cent growth to realise the vision.
Remediation process adopted by RMG units helped improve safety standards to the increased production capacity. Upon completion of remediation, some RMG units received more orders. As per Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data, Bangladesh earned $26.09 billion during the January-November period, exporting clothings. This was 9.03 per cent higher compared to $23.93 billion a year ago.
Knitwear earned $12.56 billion with an 8.22 per cent rise compared to $11.60 billion in the previous year while woven products earned $13.53 billion, which is 9.78 per cent higher compared to $12.32 billion a year ago. Last year production in many RMG outfits was hampered due to the ongoing remediation to improve safety standard in workplaces for ensuring workers’ safety. After the full-fledged completion of Corrective Action Plans (CAPs), the work order flow would increase and it would be possible to attain a double-digit growth, added the business leader.
"The government has released a report on achievements made in textiles sector under ‘Make in India’ initiative. Some of the major achievements and contribution of textiles sector include growth in FDI inflow and exports. Between March, 2014 and March, 2016, the FDI equity inflow in the textiles sector added up to $427.55 million. FDI equity inflow grew by 16 per cent in financial year 2015-16. In 2015-16 the share of textiles and apparel in total exports increased to 15 per cent from 13 per cent in 2013-14."
The government has released a report on achievements made in textiles sector under ‘Make in India’ initiative. Some of the major achievements and contribution of textiles sector include growth in FDI inflow and exports. Between March, 2014 and March, 2016, the FDI equity inflow in the textiles sector added up to $427.55 million. FDI equity inflow grew by 16 per cent in financial year 2015-16. In 2015-16 the share of textiles and apparel in total exports increased to 15 per cent from 13 per cent in 2013-14.
Achievements Galore…
Besides, more than 5.3 lakh persons trained in last two years under Integrated Skill Development Scheme, out of which 81 per cent have been placed including 79 per cent of the trained women. 19 new Textile Parks have been sanctioned over last two years with potential to facilitate investment up to Rs 300 crores and employment to 60,000 people.
Around 200 new production units have been set up in existing textile parks in the last two years with the fresh investment worth Rs 1,500 crores and additional employment generation of 11,000 persons. Textile Ministry has set up the sanctioned seven new Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETP) with Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) technology in last two years covering 3,000 SME units.
Eight Apparel and Garment making Centers have been set up in all NER States and Sikkim for promoting garment manufacturing in NER. The government has successfully launched Indian Handloom Brand for providing brand value to handloom products. It also launched Indian Handloom Website as a one stop platform for all services to consumers, bulk buyers and handloom producers.
In order to increase production of raw materials in the country, various policy initiatives and schemes are being implemented. The Cotton Development Programme focuses on cropping system approach under National Food Security Mission (NFSM) in 15 major cotton growing states with an aim to increase production & productivity. Government announces Minimum Support Price (MSP) to protect the interest of cotton and jute farmers to avoid distress sales.
Special Package for sector a booster
Nearly one crore new jobs, $30 billion in exports and investment worth Rs 74,000 crores within a period of three years was achieved on account of a special package of measures announced by the Ministry of Textiles to support the apparel sector and enable it to improve its global competitiveness.
A Special Package of Rs 6,000 crores was announced for garmenting sector with the aim of creating one crore jobs in next three years and to attract investment worth US $ 11 billion. As per the new package, overtime hours for workers shouldn’t exceed 8 hours per week in line with ILO norms. Considering the seasonal nature of the industry, fixed term employment needs to be introduced for the garment sector. The subsidy provided to garmenting units, under Amended-TUFS, has been increased from 15 per cent to 25 per cent.
Providing production incentive through enhanced Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) subsidy of additional 10 per cent for Made-ups, similar to what is provided to garments, based on additional production and employment after a period of 3 years and extension of Pradhan Mantri Paridhan Rozgar Protsahan Yojana (PMPRPY) Scheme (for apparel) to made-ups sector for providing additional 3.67 per cent share of Employer's contribution in addition to 8.33 per cent already covered under Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY).
To meet the needs of the industry for a skilled workforce and thereby support its competitiveness, the Integrated Skill Development Scheme has so far imparted training to a total of 8.49 lakh people, out of which 7.50 lakh have been assessed and 5.79 lakh placed.
Tirupur in Focus
Tirupur is a hub of the textile processing and knitting industry providing employment to over five lakh people, contributing 22 per cent of India’s total garment exports. Owing to its crucial importance, the Centre has sanctioned 200 crores for Tirupur’s dyeing industry that was on the verge of closure due to severe financial crisis after making huge investments in the country’s first Zero Liquid Discharge projects for effluents.
On Textiles Ministry’s recommendation, the Finance Ministry sanctioned funds for Tamil Nadu for 18 common effluent treatment plants set up at a cost of Rs 1,013 crores. The Rs 200 crores assistance is in the form of an interest free loan to be converted into grant, based on the performance of these plants. “This will help ailing CETPs and 450 dyeing units to recover from the financial crisis and help them to a complete the project to achieve 100 per cent capacity utilization,” the Textile Ministry said in a statement.
Textiles are often regarded one of Vietnam’s key exports with an average annual growth rate of 15 per cent during 2010-2015. However, it is also facing with a slew of challenges of which the most recent stems from labour which is no longer cheap now. On the other hand, it is also difficult to raise the textile industry to a higher level due to competitive factors in labour skills, modern technologies and equipment and diversified products. Due to limited resources, most home-based companies choose to gradually invest each year. This situation is in contrast compared to FDI as they represent less than 25 per cent of the nearly 7,000 textile enterprises nationwide but account for 70 per cent of the total export capacity. This shows that the overwhelming advantages of foreign companies over domestic enterprises will only continue to grow if reasonable policies and development direction are not formed soon.
Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association says, 2016 was extremely difficult year for the textile industry, with the lowest growth rate since 2008 (the year that Vietnam's garment recorded no export turnover growth due to the global economic crisis) so far. By 2018, Vietnam's garment industry has been forecast to face many challenges, especially with regards small and medium-sized enterprises facing the risk of closing down due to poor competitiveness and extremely difficult production conditions.
Technology Upgradation Fund Schemes claims worth Rs 30,00 crores were pending for more than three years against investments made during the so-called blackout period, June 20, 2010 to April 27, 2011. Such subsidy claims are to the tune of Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 crores. Now, some of the claims have been cleared.
The blackout period refers to the time when the government had stopped fresh sanctions of projects under the TUFS, seeking to change the contours of the scheme from an open-ended scheme to a closed-ended one, and launched the revised scheme only from April 2011.
In Budget for 2016-17, the Textiles Ministry was allocated Rs 4,595 crores, up from the revised estimate of Rs 4,326 crores in the previous fiscal. The annual rise in budgetary allocation for the textile ministry has been marginal in recent years. In 2013-14, the ministry, in fact, witnessed a cut in allocation from a year before.
Last year the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS) was introduced. An amount of Rs 12,671 crores had been approved for committed liabilities under the old scheme. Another Rs 5,151 crores has been approved for subsidy payment under the new scheme over a period of seven years, much less than the allocation seen in recent years.
To ensure rapid decision-making in key strategic area and synergies of integration, on the occasion of ITME 2016, the Santex Rimar Group launched Santex Rimar India denoting a direct presence of the Group sales and service in the country to increase accountability and ensure continuous support, improved quality and more efficiency for customers. The company’s products portfolio includes Santex, Sperotto Rimar, Cavitec, Isotex, Solwa and Smit.
Giving details, Santex Rimar Group CEO Stefano Gallucci said Indian textile, apparel and technical textile markets are projected to grow at a CAGR respectively of 9 and 8 per cent from 2013 to 2023. Given this scenario, customers need to have a direct relationship with the company. And the company wants to fulfill all their needs faster and better. The company is recruiting experienced talent to enhance customer relations.
The company has already installed more than 4,000 machines all over India and wants to keep growing along with its customers. The Group is a technology partner for knitted, woven fabrics, technical textiles, nonwovens and green solutions. Cavitec and Isotex lead the technical textiles machinery market while Santex and Sperotto Rimar produce machines for textile finishing. On the other hand, Solwa provides eco-friendly machinery for water treatment and food dehydration, agribusiness sector and industrial waste management.
Productivity, quality, reliability and energy saving are key values for Santex Rimar Group: the new sales and service organization in Indiais directly taking care not only of customers’ needs but also of their future developments. The Group is also in close contact with different institutes where researchers and students are trained: technical textile technology is taught on Cavitec’s plant in Surat while weaving technology is practiced in Ichalkaranji on SMIT looms. Santex Rimar India facilities are based in Coimbatore and Mumbai.
The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) has launched the Higg Design and Development Module (DDM). The module empowers product designers and developers to make sustainable choices at the earliest stage of apparel, footwear and textile prototype design.
The data collected through the Higg DDM, which replaces Higg’s Beta Rapid Design Module, helps steer them toward selecting lower impact materials, using more efficient construction techniques, and considering the complete life cycle of the product.
After completing a simple product assessment, the Higg DDM provides members with a single design score, making it easy to compare design concepts and make quick decisions before production. The Higg DDM provides useful benchmarking and analytics that allow users to compare products or defined groups of products to each other, to company averages, and to industry averages. Using the Higg DDM encourages continuous improvement by teaching designers and developers where they have the most control over the impact, and by giving rapid feedback on how to improve their score.
Designers have the most freedom to minimize eventual environmental impacts of the finished product at the earliest stage of the design process. Sustainable Apparel Coalition is a global industry coalition that is standardizing social and environmental sustainability performance measurement.
Vietnam’s textile and garment industry may have a trade surplus of US$15.5 billion on total export revenue of US$31 billion this year, said Vu Duc Giang, Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS).
At a press conference in HCMC on December 11, Giang said the sector has gained strong export growth this year, at 10.23 per cent, when compared to 2016, and the momentum is to continue into next year with export earnings forecast at US$33.5 to 34 billion. This segment has faced multiple challenges early this year, but the situation has changed for the better since the Q2 of this year, Giang noted.
Of the total export revenue of this year estimated at US$31 billion, textiles and garments contributed to an estimated US$25.91 billion, fabrics US$1.07 billion and cotton US$3.51 billion.
Local enterprises have tapped new markets including China, Russia and Cambodia while holding on to traditional markets such as the U.S., the EU, Japan and South Korea. It is noteworthy that local firms have managed to switch production, from processing exports for foreign firms to free on board (FOB)and original design manufacturing(ODM), Giang said. Discussing next year’s business, Giang exults that many textile and garment firms have signed big export contracts enough for production in the first haft of next year and buyers of these products have shown their confidence in product quality and delivery time of Vietnamese firms.
To achieve the target set for next year, VITAS advised textile and garment enterprises to change their production methods and meet requirements of import markets, enhance competitiveness, invest in new techniques and technologies, diversify products and build links among enterprises.
Giang said the price competition will be tough as many other countries have also sought to undercut Vietnam, especially apparel manufacturers from China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Cambodia. Therefore, local enterprises must employ highly-skilled workers, invest in modern equipment and speed up automation.
According to VITAS, domestic firms have to import 86 per cent of fabrics for garment production as locally- produced fabrics have not met standards of major import markets, while locally-produced fabrics are subject to taxes while imported fabrics used for export processing are tax-free.
The textile and garment sector is also experiencing difficulties due to rising production and labour costs. Vietnam currently has nearly 6,000 textile and garment enterprises with 2.5 million employees.
Describing it destructive to Pakistani economy, the Pakistan Cotton Ginners Association (PCGA) has strongly opposed duty-free import of cotton from India. PCGA's senior vice chairman Suhail Mehmood Haral, chairman of Ginners Group, Haji Muhammad Akram and former chairman Shehzad Ali Khan said textile millers are reluctant to purchase the stock of more than 2 million bales of cotton that are lying at ginneries as unsold stock.
They said there was no justification for lifting an undeclared ban on imports of ginned cotton from India at the cost of local growers, fibre's imports on future incoming shipments via surface or sea is not in the interest of our economy .They stressed the need for continuation of the ban on the imports from India on hold through the Wagah border and Karachi port.
On the other hand, farmers have also expressed concern over lifting of ban on the import of cotton from India by the government. The growers fear bleak prospects for domestic cotton after the lifting of ban on cotton import and demanded the government ensure procurement of crop from them on reasonable rates. On his part, Haji Muhammad Akram chairman of Ginners group urged the government to impose complete ban on cotton imports from India via the Wagah Border as it was detrimental to the interest of cotton growers of the country.
