Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Textiles, Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution said that the textile industry plays a big role in the success of FTAs. Delivering the keynote address at the 10th Asian Textile Conference TEXCON on the theme ‘Reimagining the Textile and Apparel Industry for the Next Decade’, he said free trade agreements with developed countries were on the agenda of the Modi government.
Shri Goyal said that innovation will be the defining feature of India’s march towards a developed nation. He highlighted the role of innovation in all value chains in the textile sector and also called upon the textile sector to focus on recycling and digitization. He said if the industry focuses on innovation, sustainability, digitization, newer products and use of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), it can grow rapidly and compete with the best in the world.
Shri Piyush Goyal said that digitization is another area that can help optimize the entire value chain in the sector. He expressed satisfaction that captains of industry are talking about digitization. In today’s information technology era, every industry is benefiting from new technologies like blockchain and others. He suggested that the industry should consider high quality products and basic products such as zippers and trims that the Indian textile industry currently imports.
The minister said that the industry is now benefiting greatly from the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shri Goyal said that as we complete 75 years of independence, we can be proud of the achievements of the textile sector in the last 75 years. Referring to the Prime Minister’s independence speech where he referred to Panch Pran of Goal of Developed India; Remove Colonial Mindset, Take Pride in Roots; Unity and a sense of duty, the minister said: “Every citizen must play their part with collective energy and collective commitment and the commitment of 1.3 billion people will help us achieve the five commitments made by the Prime Minister.
Complementing the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, CITI, to bring together all the stakeholders in the textile value chain on one platform, the Minister said that the theme ‘Reimagining the Textile and Apparel Industry for the Next Decade’ is very apt, especially with the Indian textile industry. exports to reach the target of $100 billion by 2030. He appreciated the forward-looking approach of the 10th Asian Textile Conference.
CITI and Egyptian Cotton also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in the presence of Minister Shri Piyush Goyal. Both industry bodies will work together for mutual benefit. State Minister for Textiles, Smt. In his address, Darshana Vikram Jardosh urged the captains of the Indian textile and apparel industry to brace themselves for the challenges of structural change in the global textile market.
Secretary, Ministry of Textiles Shri Upendra Prasad Singh in his speech said that every industry and sector in India has to play a role in achieving the goal of becoming a developed country in the next 25 years as per the vision of the Prime Minister. He said that the Indian textile industry has the strength to expand in the global market as it has a complete value chain. The government is proactively working to solve the industry’s current problems, he added.
In his welcome address, T. Rajkumar, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), said that the global textile industry is witnessing a realignment of the entire supply chain, including the countries from which the garments are sourced. Terms like ‘China Plus One’, re-shoring, onshoring etc. are commonly heard in interactions across the textile value chain. He said the value of global textile and apparel exports was $828 billion in 2021, up 8 percent from $770 billion the previous year.
The share of textiles, garments and handicrafts in India’s total exports was 10.62 percent in 2021-22. Apart from being the largest producer of cotton and jute, India is the second largest producer of silk. The technical textiles segment also has an estimated 9-11 percent share of the global market.
