INDIA
India has the strengths in terms of
raw material availability, manpower
availability, large domestic market,
presence of complete manufacturing
value chain and government support.
This has enabled growth of the
industry.
60 | FIBRE 2 FASHION NOVEMBER 2017
The ` 6,000 crore garment package announced last year came as a very positive boost for the
garment industry. All this support from the government has helped the industry to grow over
the years and become more competitive in manufacturing and exports. This support has to be
continuously enhanced and focused on the target areas by creating a catalyst scheme to develop
an ecosystem for enhancing manufacturing competiveness in order to provide a strong base for the
future development of the Indian industry.
With the aim of supporting Indian textiles and apparel industry achieve its deserved state, it is
important that state and Central government agencies provide special thrust in specific areas:
R&D Support: The Indian textiles and apparel sector is known for its traditional products, but very
limited innovation has taken place in the sector so far. Even for several home grown technologies
and process, commercial acceptability and adoption is not there in the sector. When compared
to other competing countries, the efficiency and productivity levels of Indian textile sector is quite
low. The government can have a R&D fund, which could be used for deploying state-of-art modern
technologies.
Credible mechanisms for assessing levels of quality and productivity: There is a need to develop
credible mechanisms for assessing levels of quality and productivity in segments of the supply
chain as well as in individual enterprises. The government should work together with the Quality
Council of India and the National Productivity Council for achieving this objective.
Attracting foreign direct investment (FDI): Owing to various initiatives taken by the government,
the FDI in the textiles sector has increased considerably. In the 2016-17 fiscal, the sector received
an FDI of $619 million. However, this is not enough to get the desired technical know-how, and
marketing network required to produce and sell high-end products competitively. Hence, the Indian
textiles industry needs to focus on investing in latest technologies and developing world-class
manufacturing infrastructure.
Attracting large-scale investment: To be globally competitive, it is required to promote large-scale
manufacturing set-ups. These set-ups will gain an edge because of economies of scale and will
also be able to cater to large buyers. For attracting investments in the sector, it is required that good
incentives should be given to investors. Incentives focused on technology up-gradation, capacity
addition and long term development of the sector are crucial at this point of time. The incentives
need to be attractive enough for Indian as well as international investors. Improved investment
environment will stimulate investments, provide technical know-how and develop state-of-the-art
set-ups required for the sustainable development of the sector.