Vice-President urges apparel exporters to increase share in the global market

“The apparel sector is the most labour intensive and employs skilled man power. It can be a vehicle for social changes in rural areas as it will empower women and children,” Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu said.

January 21, 2021 05:41 pm | Updated 05:43 pm IST - COIMBATORE:

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu. File

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu. File

Indian apparel exporters should aspire to achieve double digit share in the global market, Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu said on Thursday, inaugurating the Apparel Export Promotion Council’s (AEPC) virtual fair platform.

“The Indian textile industry is the second largest employer in the country, providing jobs to 45 million people. The apparel segment alone employs 12.9 million people and majority of them are women. The apparel sector is the most labour intensive and employs skilled man power. It can be a vehicle for social changes in rural areas as it will empower women and children,” he said.

While India is the largest producer of cotton and jute and is a major yarn producer, it lacks the competitive edge in fabrics and garments. Hence, there is a need to improve the competitiveness of these segments. Bangladesh and Vietnam are major competitors for India because of the availability fo labour in these countries. “Skilled manpower should be our core strength,” Mr. Naidu said.

The Vice-President also urged the industry to look at a diverse portfolio of products to tap new markets. The private sector should partner with the government and improve competitiveness even in new areas such as MMF and technical textiles. The textile and clothing sector should focus on technology upgrade and upskilling workers to improve its competitiveness.

“The global market for technical textiles is $220 billion and India has huge potential to tap in this sector. The government has come out with production linked incentive scheme for technical textiles. The apparel manufacturers should aim for double digit share in the global market,” he said.

The Vice-President pointed out that the the ongoing pandemic has necessitated export events to take place on the virtual medium.

Union Minister for Textiles Smriti Zubin Irani said the Indian apparel industry created history by developing into a ₹7,000 crore ($1 billion) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and N95 mask industry in the midst of pandemic in just two months.

“Reflecting the same enterprise, the AEPC has now created a virtual platform. It will give rise to opportunities for over 300 top exporters in the country. But knowing that AEPC is a 8,600-member family, I am hopeful that the platform specially gives space to those who innovate, who belong to the SME segment, who are start-ups as young innovators need a supporting hand,” she said.

AEPC chairman A. Sakthivel sought expediting trade agreements with the U.S., EU, U.K., Canada and Australia. He also urged the international buyers to request their respective governments to fast track the trade agreements with India. “These deals can double Indian apparel exports in three years,” he said.

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