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Leather Industry
The Budget announcement for rolling out of a focused product scheme for footwear and leather sectors will help enhance productivity, competitiveness and exports by over Rs 1.1 lakh crore, CLE said on Sunday. The Council for Leather Exports (CLE) said the scheme will support design capacity, component manufacturing, and machinery required for the production of non-leather quality footwear. "The scheme will support thrust areas like design capacity, component manufacturing, and machinery required for production of footwear and products," CLE Chairman Rajendra Kumar Jalan said, adding that the scheme is expected to facilitate employment for 22 lakh people, generate turnover of Rs Rs 4 lakh crore and exports of over Rs 1.1 lakh crore. He added that it will also enhance production and productivity by attracting investments and will strengthen the component and machinery ecosystem of the sector. CLE Executive Director R Selvam said the proposal to remove 20 per cent export duty on crust
The government in its coming Budget must extend fiscal benefits under the PLI (production linked incentive) scheme to sectors such as handicrafts and leather that can create more jobs, Deloitte said on Sunday. It also suggested that the existing PLI schemes must continue in sectors that have seen success, such as electronics, auto and semiconductors. The government in 2021 announced PLI schemes for 14 sectors, including telecommunications, white goods, textiles, manufacturing of medical devices, automobiles, speciality steel, food products, high-efficiency solar PV modules, advanced chemistry cell battery, drones, and pharma, with an outlay of Rs 1.97 lakh crore. Deloitte further suggested that to improve global liquidity (once the Western central banks start easing their monetary policies), the government can raise the ceiling for investment size and remove location restrictions to attract more foreign investment. "Multi-brand retail and e-commerce are some sectors that may benefi
The country's leather and footwear exports are expected to grow by over 12 per cent to USD 5.3 billion in the current financial year on account of healthy demand in key global markets, CLE Chairman Rajendra Kumar Jalan has said. He also said several global companies, including from the US, are showing keen interest in setting up manufacturing bases in India. "Our exports were USD 4.69 billion in 2023-24, and this fiscal, we are expecting it to increase to USD 5.3 billion. Order books are good for the coming months," Jalan said, adding that "huge demand is coming from the US and UK". Indian exporters are exploring business opportunities in Africa as well, he added. He informed that the industry is labour intensive, providing employment to about 42 lakh people. The sector has a total turnover of about USD 19 billion, which includes exports of USD 5 billion. "The sector has the potential to reach a total turnover of USD 47 billion by 2030, which includes the domestic production of US
A delegation of over 20 leather sector executives will be visiting Russia this month to seek investments and tap growing export opportunities. The three-day visit will start from August 26. Council for Leather Exports Executive Director R Selvam said that at present India is exporting leather goods in the range of USD 60 million to USD 80 million, but it is low as huge opportunities are there in Russia. "We will also participate in an international fair - Euro Shoes Premier Collection in Moscow. We are taking a delegation with an aim to attract investments, technology collaboration in tannery and product manufacturing," Selvam told PTI. He said that huge export opportunities are there in areas like leather garments, goods and footwear. Though there are payment issues in Russia due to Western countries' sanctions on account of the Russia-Ukraine war, exporters who are dealing in Rupee can ship the goods. The export of leather, leather products and footwear rose from USD 44.84 mill
Government think-tank Niti Aayog is looking at tax-related issues, including inverted duty structure in three sectors of engineering, leather, and textiles, an official said on Monday. The issues are likely to be taken up with higher authorities for their resolution to promote the growth of these sectors, the official said. Industry representatives of leather and engineering sectors said that they have shared a list of GST (Goods and Services Tax) and inverted duty structure-related issues with the Niti Aayog. "We expect the government to resolve those issues as it would help in promoting manufacturing and exports from the country," an industry official said. The leather sector has recommended the reinstatement of basic customs duty on the import of wet blue, crust and finished leathers. The exercise assumes significance as these three sectors are labour-intensive and contribute significantly to the country's merchandise exports. The leather and footwear industry employs 4.42 mi
The government should not extend fiscal support under the production linked incentive scheme (PLI) to small firm-dominated products like leather shoes and handicraft as the move may shift business away from those enterprises, think tank GTRI said in a report on Monday. Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said small firms need assistance like access to technology and low-cost finance and not PLI. It also said PLI for industries like food processing or auto, where many domestic manufacturers make similar products, introduces competitive distortion by giving money to a few firms. "PLI money at the rate 4-6 per cent of incremental sales could increase profit margins by 30-40 per cent, giving a considerable price advantage over others," GTRI Co-Founder Ajay Srivastava said. He said non-PLI recipients suffer for no fault and the scheme should avoid incentivizing such sectors. It should focus only on cutting-edge product groups where India has no manufacturing capabilities, he added.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said the Bantala leather complex in Kolkata will get an additional investment of Rs 10,000 crore. In the last one year, 92 new tanneries have been given land lease for setting up units in the complex, she said. "At Bantala, Rs 30,000 crore have been invested that generated employment for three lakh people. Another Rs 10,000 crore will be invested," Banerjee said at a programme here in Howrah district. There are 50 units at Bantala and 50 more are coming up, the CM said. Banerjee on Thursday also laid the foundation stone of several projects and extended government services to six lakh people in five districts - Howrah, Hooghly, South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Nadia. She said the Duare Sarkar' (government at doorstep) scheme will be held every three months. Nine crore applications for the scheme were received by the state government, of which seven crore have been considered, the chief minister said. Efforts are unde
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the government is considering a new scheme to support domestic manufacturing of machinery and accessories used in the leather industry. He also expressed hope that the country's exports during the current fiscal would register a high growth rate in both goods and services compared to 2021-22. In 2021-22, exports of goods and services touched an all-time high of USD 676 billion. "We are trying to draw up a new scheme to support manufacturing of machinery domestically, to support manufacturing of trimming or embellishments and other accessories that may be required in your industry," Goyal said here at an event of Council for Leather Exports (CLE). On the council's demand for the reinstatement of basic customs duty exemption on the wet blue crust and finished leather, Goyal assured them to take up the matter with the concerned ministry. According to CLE, such leathers are mainly imported by domestic exporters for making ...