The Union Textiles Minister Smt. Smriti Irani called for a well-coordinated cohesive governance approach, for more effective programme implementation and sectoral outcomes. Noting that many states do not have dedicated Textiles Ministers, the Minister expressed the need for more dialogue and convergence at intra-state, inter-state and Centre-state levels. Accordingly, in line with the spirit of cooperative federalism, the Minister has ensured that the views and contribution of all states would be reflected in the new textile policy, so that India becomes the textile destination of the world. The Minister was speaking at the concluding session of the one-day Annual Conference of State Textiles Ministers, at DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi today.
Earlier, delivering the key note address, the Minister of State for Textiles, Shri Ajay Tamta highlighted various measures taken by the Central Government to boost the growth and remove bottlenecks and challenges facing the sector.
Stating that a huge apparel package has been given by the Government of India, Smt. Irani noted that there is need for support of state governments in expanding manufacturing capacity and employment generation capacity. She said that only this would address the challenges of industry such as cost of power and labour. The Minister called for capacity enhancement in production of textile machinery in the country.
Speaking of the importance of branding in textile sector, Smt. Irani mentioned that India’s positioning in international market depends upon branding of Indian textile products. She recalled how branding of handloom products by involving top designers and retail giants in the country, has led to a paradigm shift in the handloom sector.
Stating that education of children is the primary concern of weavers and artisans, Smt. Irani spoke of the MoU between IGNOU and The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) to provide free, anytime, any-where education to the children. The Minister sought support of state governments for the success of the programme, specifically in identifying artisans and weavers who need such support.
Textiles Secretary, Smt. Rashmi Verma highlighted the challenges faced by the textile sector, especially in the export market, due to uneven tariff and non-tariff barriers and expressed the hope that GST will bring down input costs, give a boost to textile exports and bring in greater capital investment in the sector.
The Conference gave a platform to the states to exchange their views on various policies and programmes implemented by the Government of India and specific challenges faced by the State Governments in their implementation. In all, Ministers and senior officials of textile departments of 18 states participated in the conference. The Ministers who attended the Conference include: Shri Tamiyo Taga (Arunachal Pradesh); Shri Ranjit Dutta (Assam); Shri H. Rohluna (Mizoram); Shri Punnulal Mohle (Chhattisgarh); Shri E. Pengteang (Nagaland); Shri Rohitbhai Patel (Gujarat); Shri Chander Parkash (J&K); Shri Mehboob Ali (Uttar Pradesh); Shri K.T. Rama Rao (Telangana); Shri Kinjarapu Atchannaidu (Andhra Pradesh); and Shri Sanjay Seth, Chairman, Khadi Gramodyog, Jharkhand.
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