The Hindu Business Line : Quality crucial for textile exports in post WTO-quota era

BETTER quality standards, upgradation of technology in the Indian textile sector coupled with branding as a tool could help garner a larger share of the global export opportunity in the post WTO-quota regime, according to experts in the industry.

This will, apart from strengthening the industry and generating additional employment, offer an opportunity for branding of textile products for the global marketplace.

The Director of National Institute for Fashion Technology (NIFT), Dr. B.V. Somasekhar, said India is the second largest producer of apparel and textiles and as per the US International Trade Commission (USITC, January 2004 report) is the only country with the ability to compete with China in the textile, garment and apparel industry collectively. But this called for significant technology upgradation and marketing skills.

Speaking at the `Indian Apparel Exports-Post Quota, Opportunities and Challenges,' the NIFT Director said the huge Indian Diaspora often provides an entry to foreign markets, which can be leveraged. The Indian textile industry is the third largest producer of yarn and the fifth largest producer of synthetic fibre. In spite of several strengths, the overall global share is meagre 3.11 per cent. Backed by an ambitious export target of $50 billion by 2010 compared to $13 billion now, upgradation of technology and branding holds the key for this success, experts opined.

Officials from the Andhra Pradesh Government said that the State's ambitious target of achieving total exports of about $5 billion from textiles by the year 2010 was possible given the sustained effort to develop specialised theme parks to promote the textile industry.

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