Introduction: Textile Industry in India
The Indian textile industry is one of the largest in the world with a large unmatched raw material base and manufacturing strength across the value chain. India is the 6th largest exporter of Textiles & Apparel in the world. India’s textiles and clothing industry is one of the mainstays of the national economy.
India is the 6th largest exporter of Textiles & Apparel in the world. The share of textile, apparel and handicrafts in India’s total exports was 11.4% in 2020-21. India holds 4% share of the global trade in textiles and apparel. India’s textiles products, including handlooms and handicrafts, are exported to more than 100 countries. USA and EU-27 and UK, account for approximately 47% of India’s textiles and apparel exports.
Textile sector right from being one of the old sectors involved in product manufacturing in India also has significant historical events in its name, right from Indigo cash crop farming to Shram-daan, by use of Charkha. So the importance, dependence & expanse of the sector right from production of the required raw material to complete product manufacturing already do exist within the country. In fact each state has some special type of textile production. Right from Kashmiri Pashminishwals, zari worked material, Kutch Shawls of Gujarat, Paithani saree, karvathi tussar silk saree, Solapur chaddar of Maharashtra, Telia rumal of telangana, Uppada jamdani sarees, Salem Venpattu Silk Dhotis of Tamil Nadu, Chendamangalam Dhotis of Kerala and many more such textile products are manufactured in whole of India Following image shows the mega clusters where textile industry has already a ready set-up and are involved in huge scale manufacturing of the textile products.
This huge variety and the vast spread of the textile industry in India has a major support base of indigenously produced and available raw material. Now just let us glance through the most extensively used raw material for manufacturing.
- Cotton- It is one of the most important cash crops and accounts for around 25% of the total global fiber production. India occupies first position in the world in cotton acreage with around 133 lakh hectares under cotton cultivation. Also, India has emerged as one of the largest producers, consumers and exporters of cotton in the World. Apart from being the provider of a basic necessity of life i.e. clothing which is next only to food, cotton is also one of the largest contributors to India’s net foreign exchange by way of exports in the form of raw cotton, intermediate products and fabrics to ultimate finished products. Due to its economic importance in India, it is also termed as “White-Gold”. Cotton Corporation of India (CCI), a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Textiles, is the nodal agency of Government of India, responsible for procurement of cotton for further processing.
- Jute- The Jute industry is one of the major industries in the eastern region, particularly in West Bengal. It is estimated that the jute industry provides direct employment to 0.37 million workers in organized mills and in diversified units. Government of India provides support to the jute growers not only through MSP operations by the Jute Corporation of India (a public sector undertaking for jute) but also through direct purchase of jute sacking valued at around Rs.7584 crores annually for packing foodgrains. As per National Jute board statistics, the export of all jute goods to the top 20 countries between April 2021-October 2021 stood at 83% of the total exports valued at Rs. 20,214.48 million (US$ 263 million), indicating the significant share of traditional markets.
- Silk- Silk an insect fiber, with luster, drape and strength. Because of these unique features, silk is known as the “Queen of Textiles”. India, the land of ancient civilisation and has contributed many things, silk being one of them. India is the second largest producer of silk in the world and also the largest consumer. Nevertheless, India is the only country, which is producing all the four commercial varieties of silk, namely Mulberry, Tropical Tasar & Oak Tasar, Muga and Eri. The Indian sericulture industry has the unique distinction of high employment potential, low capital requirement and provides remunerative income to silk growers. India with the production of 33,770 MTs of silk is the second largest producer of silk in the world after China.
- Wool- India ranks 6th amongst clean wool producer countries and 9th amongst greasy wool producers. Indian wool is almost exclusively of broader micron and used in manufacturing of carpets and rugs. India has the 3rd largest sheep population in the world, having 6.15 crores sheep, producing 45 million kg. of raw wool, and accounting for 3.1% of total world wool production. Out of 45 million kg. of wool produced in the country, about 85% is carpet grade wool, 5% apparel grade, and 10% coarser grade wool for making blankets, etc.
- Handlooms- The Handloom Sector is one of the largest unorganized economic activities and is an integral part of the rural and semi-rural livelihood. Handloom weaving constitutes one of the richest and most vibrant aspects of the Indian cultural heritage, and provides direct and indirect employment to 35.22 lakh weavers and allied workers. The sector has the advantage of being less capital intensive, minimal use of power, eco-friendly, and flexibility of small production, openness to innovations and adaptability to market requirements. It is a natural productive asset and a tradition at the cottage level, which has sustained and grown by transfer of skill from one generation to the other.
The availability of Raw material, skilled labor, the technique and Know-how and the market plays an important role in the huge scale growth and expansion of the textile sector in India. However, the penetration level of technical textiles is low in India at 5-10%, against 30-70% in advanced countries. Technical textiles are textiles materials and products manufactured primarily for technical performance and functional properties rather than aesthetic characteristics.
India’s share in Man-made Fibre (MMF) lines is only 0.78%. Currently MMF dominates global textile fiber consumption with 72: 28 ratio i.e., MMF 72% and 28% is Natural fiber. The share of MMF has been steadily increasing due to the inherent limitations of growth of cotton and other natural fibers. And the point of concern is the share of export of MMF apparel is only 6.8 per cent of total apparel export from India.
But the scene is changing. The Indian Manmade fiber (MMF) textile industry is showing growth. Today, India produces almost all the types of synthetic fibers, be it polyester, viscose, nylon or acrylic. Currently, we are the 2nd largest producer of both polyester and viscose globally. MMF textile industry in India is self-reliant across the value chain right from raw materials to the garmenting. Our fabrics are international standard and known for their excellent workmanship, colors, comforts, durability and other technical properties.
So to further encourage the traditional as well as the modern types of textile production the government of India has affirmed on the Production Linked Incentive scheme for the Textile sector in India. The PLI scheme for the textile under the Ministry of Textile has approved 61 applications with the proposed total investment of Rs.19,077 crore and a projected turnover is Rs. 184,917 crore over a period of 5 years with a proposed direct employment of 240,134. The scheme has two parts,
- Part-1 where minimum investment is Rs. 300 crore and minimum turnover required to be achieved for incentive is Rs.600 crore; and
- Part-2 where minimum investment is of Rs. 100 crore and minimum turnover required to be achieved for incentive is Rs. 200 crore.
There are a total of 12 targeted segments to be covered and incentivised under the PLI textile scheme are as follows :
Aayush Patil
Aayush Patil is a Research Intern at Tatvita. Presently he is pursuing his bachelors in the Liberal Arts department at the Savitribai Phule Pune University.
