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Setting up a knitwear research institute in Tiruppur and a cargo terminal with international connectivity at Coimbatore airport, were some of the suggestions submitted by the Tiruppur Exporters’ Association, as part of proposals to revise the Tamil Nadu Textile Policy 2019.
The association president K.M. Subramanian, in a meeting with the State Textiles Commissioner, urged the State government to address issues such as housing for labour, increasing the overtime cap for the apparel sector, upskilling existing workers, transportation subsidy to ferry workers to factories, bank Basel norms, and NPA classification.
He also urged the government to set up a permit for availing of the ATUF scheme subsidy, in addition to the State government capital subsidy.
Also read: Tiruppur Exporters Association welcome PM Mitra mega textile park
The TEA has 1,213 exporting units located in Tirupur Cluster. The Tirupur Knitwear Cluster provides direct employment to 6 lakh workers, 60 per cent of whom are women, besides indirect employment to two lakh workers.
Readymade garment exports from Tamil Nadu, comprising knitwear and wovens, stood at Rs 38,000 crore in 2021-2022, and is poised to touch Rs. 50,000 crore in the next two to three years. Ready Made Garments (Knitwear & Woven Garments) accounted for 21 per cent of the total merchandise exports from the state.
Just as the Central Leather Research Institute in Chennai contributes towards product development and innovation for the industry, a Knitwear Research Institute in Tiruppur would help in the speedy growth of the industry and exports, the association said.
“Considering the exports and movement of passengers from this region, we request the Tamil Nadu government to offer international carrier connections in Tiruppur,” it said.
The garment sector is labour intensive and acute shortage of skilled labour is the single major threat to the growth of the industry, especially in clusters like Tiruppur. Construction of houses / labour dormitories in clusters like Tiruppur would remove one of the barriers to the the permanent migration of labourers from their home villages to industrial clusters.
A project proposal to upskill the 50,000 existing workers in one year at an estimated Rs 20.57 crore has beensubmitted to the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation.
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