Maharashtra is set to accept some of the major recommendations proposed by the Suresh Halwankar Committee in its report on the new Textile Policy of Maharashtra. The textile sector is the second largest employer, after agriculture, in Maharashtra. At present, over 30 lakh people are directly employed and two crore are indirectly employed in the industry.

The committee has recommended sick cooperative cotton mills be handed over to the private sector for good. Five mega textile hubs are to be developed and foreign direct investment be attracted to the textile industry. It specifies Amravati be developed as a spinning hub, Nagpur as a knitting hub, Solapur as a terry towel hub and Ichalkaranji as a suiting-shirting-denim mega composite textile hub. These hubs are to have all facilities, along with a common effluent treatment plant and water recycling plants in the vicinity, thus cutting down on cost and the time of making garments from cotton drastically.

The committee hailed China's textile policy and suggested a fiber to fashion approach to turn around the sector, which was once blooming in the state. It also seeks to reduce the power tariff for the sector, while encouraging setting up of more spinning and processing plants in the state.