Government to invest Rs 200 cr in 8 textile mega clusters

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has announced to set up eight textile mega clusters at Varanasi, Bareily, Lucknow, Surat, Kutch, Bhagalpur, Mysore and one in Tamil Nadu with a sum of Rs 200 crore. Jaitley also proposed to provide Rs 50 crore to set-up a Trade Facilitation Centre and a Crafts Museum to develop and promote handloom products and carry forward the rich tradition of handlooms of Varanasi.
 
To encourage exports of readymade garments, the Finance Minister has proposed to increase the duty free entitlement for import of trimmings, embellishments and other specified items from 3% to 5% of the value of their exports. Apart from it, faster clearance of import and export cargo will also be implemented to reduce transaction costs and improves business competitiveness.
 
The textile industry, which plays a pivotal role in the economic life of India, also majorly contributes to industrial output, employment generation and the export earnings of the country. It contributes about 14% to the industrial production, 4% to the GDP and 11% to the country’s export earnings. The textile sector is the second largest provider of employment after agriculture.