The Maharashtra Government is taking up initiatives to boost investment and employment in the textile sector. According to sources close to the textile department, the government has set the objective of investing Rs 36,000 cr in the industry, which is anticipated to create 10 lakh jobs in the state. To aid the business, the State Government has announced a variety of incentives, including reduced power tariffs and stable cotton prices, as revealed by Textile Minister Chandrakant Patil.
Maharashtra, which generates 28 percent of the country’s overall cotton production, has plans to build textile hubs in the underdeveloped regions of Vidarbha and Marathwada. In total, 42 lakh hectares of land are dedicated to cotton farming in the state, and between 40 and 45 lakh farmers are engaged in the industry.
The government has also taken note of the varying rates of cotton, which significantly impact the textile industry. The State Government has promised to get involved and fix the issue in order to address the cost volatility. The government will purchase cotton at predetermined rates before transferring it to the textile industry for sale at such prices, as per a report.
In addition, it will also deal with the challenge of recruiting qualified personnel. The State Government has recommended building a brownfield park in Amravati (Vidarbha area) and Aurangabad under the PM Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (PM MITRA) project (Marathwada region).
Prior to this, for the development of textile centres, the Maharashtra Government had chosen 115 tehsils across 18 districts in Vidarbha, Marathwada, and areas of North Maharashtra that cultivate cotton. The mismatch of locating textile hubs in areas other than those where cotton is produced has damaged the sector over time, despite the fact that it is still ranked second in terms of employment generation.
However, the sources believe that the BJP-Sena (BSS) alliance will find meeting the target in two and a half years difficult.
