The Union Government led by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has been taking several pathbreaking steps to boost the exports of Indian textiles and clothing products and fuel the growth of the textile industry, the second largest employment provider of the nation and providing jobs to over 110 million people especially rural masses and women folks by enhancing the global competitiveness and creating a level playing field. The Ministry of Textiles has set an ambitious target of increasing the textile business size from USD 165 Bn to USD 350 Bn by 2030 including the exports of USD 100 Bn from USD 43.7 Bn achieved during the year 2022. This increase would have a potential to attract around USD 100 Bn new investments and create new jobs for 10 million people during the next five years apart from sustaining the existing jobs and aiding the entire textile value chain remain financially healthy.
Though Indian textile industry has the second largest manufacturing capacity, next only to China and abundant availability of raw materials, cheap labour and more so manufacturing excellence, the average exports stagnated at around USD 37 to 38 Bn during the last 10 years mainly due to the tariff disadvantage. The competing nations like Bangladesh, Vietnam, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, etc., with duty free access could grow exponentially and take advantage of China +1 advantage. Realising the urgent need for FTAs, the Union Government gave a thrust for concluding the FTAs with major countries, concluded the FTAs with Australia, UAE, Mauritius, in a record time and now mitigated all the challenges and concluded the long awaited UK FTA. This FTA would enable the textiles particularly the garment and made-ups segments to grab sizable market share in UK with its manufacturing excellence capabilities.
Dr S K Sundararaman, Chairman, The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) has lauded the Union Government for arriving at the historical trade agreement with UK. He has profusely thanked Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi and Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal and Minister of Textiles Giriraj Singh for the pathbreaking achievement.
SIMA Chairman has stated that India’s total textile and clothing exports was around USD 2370 million during 2017-18 and got gradually reduced to the level of USD 2119 million during 2024-25 mainly due to the tariff disadvantage. He has said that in the total UK exports of textiles, ready-made garments of all textiles account around 70% and cotton yarn/fabrics/made-ups, Handloom products, etc., account around 15%. He has stated under the new FTA, 10% to 12% tariff levied by UK on Indian shirts, trousers, women’s dresses and bedlinen and 4% to 8% tariff levied on yarns and fabrics would become zero.
Dr. Sundararaman has stated that India-UK FTA has given new sigh of relief when the Indian textile industry is struggling with the slow down in the US exports due to the steep increase and uncertainties of US reciprocal tariff rates. He has said that the exports of home textiles especially the kitchen linen from clusters like Karur had been struggling with the tariff disadvantage when compared with countries like Pakistan and the sector would now soon be able to double its exports to UK. He has added that UK being the second largest market for ready-made garments, the zero duty access would bring huge investments across the value chain and make all the seven PM MITRA Parks, PLI scheme, the technical textile NTTM scheme and all other State and Central Government textile industry related schemes a grand success. He has stated the country would be able to utilise 20 to 30 percent surplus production capacities in the entire textile value chain and grab the export opportunities thrown out by India-UK FTA in a short span of time.