Incentives for textile industry will create jobs: Nirmala Sitharaman

The Modi Government on Wednesday announced a Rs 6,000 crore package for the textiles and apparels sector to help it wrest a bigger share of the global market. The package also provides the sector more flexible labour laws and financial incentives.
The Government hopes the package will create one crore new jobs in three years, attract Rs 74,000 crore in investment and generate $30 billion in exports earnings.
“The package will help in realising the true potential of employment generation in the textile and apparel sector,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said at a briefing on Cabinet decision.
The thrust of the package is to make this labour-intensive industry cost competitive and achieve economies of scale, which can help it corner a bigger share of the global market.
“We will overtake Vietnam and Bangladesh in garment exports within next three years if we properly implement the package,” Textiles Secretary Rashmi Verma said.
The ‘extra push’ given to the textiles industry through an incentive package will help create more jobs and push exports, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, was quoted by PTI as saying.
“It is a sector where India has gained a lot of advantage. It has great potential for job creation. The push has been given to the sector due to various global developments,” she was further quoted as saying.
According to a PTI report: Textiles exports contribute significantly to the country’s total exports at about $17 billion in 2014-15. The sector is witnessing huge competition from small countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam, which have access to developed markets at lower tariffs.