Kinfra to set up 350 acre integrated textile park

The textile sector in Kerala is set to get a boost with the state government initiating work on an integrated textile park in Kanjikode in Palakkad district.

The Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation's (Kinfra) new integrated textile park, which is to come up on 350 acre of land in Kanjikode, will house units connected with various processes of the textile sector.

The work on the park, which was kick-started by Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan recently, is being implemented as per the Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP) of the Union ministry of textiles.

The ministry has formulated the scheme by merging the existing Apparel Parks for Exports (APE) and the Textile Centre Infrastructure Development (TCID) schemes.

According to official sources, the SITP norms stipulate that industry associations will be the main promoters of the textile parks coming up under the scheme and the Centre would support the scheme by way of grant or equity limited to 40 per cent of the project cost, subject to a ceiling of Rs 40 crore.

The SITP aims at providing the textile industry with world-class infrastructure facilities for setting up textile units, a Kinfra source said here. The scheme facilitates textile units to meet international environment and social standards and also envisages the setting up of 25 textile parks throughout the country by 2007-08.

According to A S Suresh Babu, managing director, Kinfra, the SITP will help the textile industry to benefit from the quota-free trade in textiles that came into existence from 2005.

Further, it will help in boosting the export turnover from the state and provide direct as well as indirect job opportunities to many, he added.

The integrated textile park coming up in Kanjikode is expected to provide employment to 15,000 people. There have also been enquiries from industrialists to set up units at the park at the earliest. Keeping this in view, the state government has assured entrepreneurs willing to set up shop at the park with all infrastructure facilities.

Further, the textile park is expected to provide a big boost to the development of Kanjikode industrial belt.

The textile park in Kanjikode will boast of international standards and have facilities, such as high quality testing laboratory, design centre, training centre, trade centre, display centre, warehousing facility and raw materials department.