India : Govt To Make Textiles Modern And Competitive

Shahnawaz Hussain, the new textile minister of India, said that the biggest challenge to textile industry is to compass the export target of $50 billion as set out in the New Textile Policy 2000.

Mr Hussain added that his aim is to modernize the textile industry and make it competitive to face the challenges confronting it after the extant multi-fibre arrangement (MFA) quota regime is dismantled in end-2004.

The modernisation of textile industry will play a major role to achieve the $50-billion target considering the fact that the quota regime governing global trade in textiles and clothing would be dismantled by end-December 2004, India could achieve the $50-billion target much ahead of the scheduled 2010 if the industry was modernised and made competitive through policy intervention and other support.

Countries such as Bangladesh have become so competitive that Indian exporters had even set up base in Bangladesh for export to third countries.

Hussain said "My priority would be to restore the confidence of domestic manufacturers within the country by enabling them to be competitive in manufacture and merchandise."

The industry accounts for eight per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), 17 per cent in manufacture capacity and 27 per cent in terms of export earnings.