Textile Ministry eyes USD 60 bn exports in 2014-15

The government is eyeing textile exports target of USD 60 billion in 2014-15, as it aims to cash in on developed nations' increasing dependence on India while focusing on skill development in the country.
"Next year, the (textiles exports) target will be USD 60 billion, having seen the potential and concentrating on skill development in the country, focus on textile sector by the government and also the necessity of the advanced nations to depend entirely on Asia, especially China and India," Union Textiles Minister K S Rao told reporters here.
"It is not a difficult proposition to increase textile exports to USD 60 billion by 2015 March," he added.

The government has set textiles exports target of USD 43 billion for the current fiscal.
Rao also inaugurated Tex-Trends India 2014 at Pragati Maidan here, one of Asia's largest textile shows covering Apparel, Fashion Jewellery and Accessories, Home Furnishing, Cotton textiles & Jute garments etc, to showcase the emerging textiles in India.
"In the joint efforts with Ministry of Textiles, the idea of holding Tex Trends is to showcase and leverage our strengths and complements our efforts to create India's garment & textiles from fibre to fashion," Apparel Exports Promotion Council (AEPC) Chairman Virender Uppal said.

He also pressed for a 5 per cent duty credit scrip for the import of specialty fabrics not available in India on actual user basis and a separate chapter for exports in the banking sector for availability of easy credit to industry, to boost exports.

The textile industry employs 80 million people directly and indirectly.
Tex Trends 2014 is an initiative by the Ministry of Textiles, with financial assistance under the Market Access Initiative (MAI) of Ministry of Commerce & Industry.