Finance Minster (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget presentation, has announced a number of measures to support the textile industry.
The Minister has declared a five-year “Mission for Cotton Productivity” aimed at increasing cotton production, especially extra long staple (ELS) cotton. ELS cotton fibres, which are longer than 35 mm and are used to make high-quality fabrics, are a major import for India.
According to Sitharaman’s Budget address, the five-year mission will support extra-long staple cotton cultivation and enable notable increases in cotton farming’s sustainability and productivity.
Additionally, farmers will receive the best scientific and technological assistance from the Government. In keeping with the integrated 5F vision for the textile industry, this will boost farmer incomes and guarantee a consistent supply of high-quality cotton to revitalise India’s textile industry, she said.
The FM added that by lowering the cost of sophisticated technology, the Government hopes to increase the production of geotextiles, medical textiles, and agrotextiles. In order to do this, two more kinds of shuttle-less looms will now be completely free from import taxes, which will lower expenses for textile producers.
A modification to the Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on particular knitted fabrics (which fall under nine distinct tariff lines) was also announced by the Union Finance Minister. Earlier, depending on the type of fabric, the duty used to be either 10 per cent or 20 per cent. The duty is now set at “20 per cent or Rs. 115 per kg, whichever is higher.”
This avoids under-invoicing and safeguards domestic textile producers by guaranteeing that less expensive textiles nonetheless incur a fair customs duty.
