The Ministry of Textiles has further extended the timeline for submission of applications under the PLI Scheme for Textiles till 28 February. Earlier the date of submission of online application was upto 31 January 2022. The Union Government in September last year had approved the Rs 10,683 cr Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the textile sector. The scheme covers items from the MMF (manmade fibre) and the technical textiles sectors.
The current PLI scheme is expected to help attract additional investment by existing companies in the MMF and technical textile sectors and usher in new investments by Indian and multinational companies in this segment. The scheme aims to enhance India’s manufacturing capabilities by increasing investment and production in the textile sector, especially in the MMF segment and technical textiles under greenfield and brownfield investments.
The government also hopes that incentives offered under the PLI scheme will create a select group of world-class companies in the MMF and technical textile segments that have the potential to grow, both in size and scale, using cutting-edge technology and thereby penetrating global value chains.
Along with existing schemes like RoSCTL, RoDTEP and other measures by the government, including providing raw materials at competitive prices and specially designed skill development, the government hopes that the newly-unveiled PLI scheme will give a fillip to the sector.
Textile and clothing exports from the country increased 18 percent in dollar terms and nearly 25 percent in rupee terms between April and December 2021 compared to the same period in 2019. Textile and clothing exports are expected to be a little more than $40 bn this financial year (2021-2022) compared to the target of $44 bn.
However, the growth is mainly in terms of value. While the exporters have orders, high raw material prices are a deterrent to an increase in volume. If the current trend in raw material prices continues, sustaining this will be a big challenge for the exporters as the majority of the garment exporting units is MSMEs. The government should step in to bring stability in raw material prices.
