Minister spots Technical Textile as a hopeful sector

Tech Textiles & Nonwovens

Minister spots Technical Textile as a hopeful sector

Union Minister of State for Textiles Santosh Kumar Gangwar was in Coimbatore recently to inaugurate the Centre of Excellence for Industrial/ Home Textiles. He expressed his contentment regarding the development of this region and mentioned that technical textiles has differentiated itself from apparels or textile materials and products used for non- aesthetic purposes with emphasis on technical performance. He further added that technical textiles are an emerging sector for the industry and the potential remains largely untapped in India. The projected growth rate for technical textile is about 20 percent year-on-year, and stressed the need for improved focus on this sector of the textile industry. Highlighting the impetus given to technical textiles, the initiatives and schemes rolled out for growth and development of the sector, Gangwar said that under the ATUF (Amended Technology Upgradation Fund) scheme, technical textile machinery is eligible for 50 percent capital subsidy.

The government has also launched the Technology Mission on Technical Textiles (TMTT) with a fund outlay of Rs. 200 crore. Anu Garg, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, said the CoE is part of the TMTT. The government has facilitated setting up of 8 CoE with fund allocation of Rs. 25 crore each.While Textile Commissioner Kavita Gupta assured that the Textiles Ministry has facilitated setting up of the facility and it was now up to the industry to partner with the government.Also in the event Santosh Kumar Gangwar mentioned that, the Textile exports are expected to cross US$ 40 billion this fiscal. This is expected to be lower than the target of $47.5 billion set by the government for textile and clothing for 2015-16.