The Textile Ministry informed Parliament on Tuesday that no National Textile Corporation (NTC) plant has been shut down since 2015. Production was stopped in all 23 of the NTC mills that were in operation because of COVID-19. A lack of operating capital and other financial constraints prevented some of the mills from returning to normal operations in January 2021.
Despite significant financial limitations, all Industrial Development Authority (IDA) personnel and workers needed for vital services had received their full salary and wages through October 2024, Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh said in a written response to the Lok Sabha.
He added that up until June 2023, the remaining employees who were not reporting for duty were paid in full. These employees received half of their pay between July 2023 and October 2024.
These 23 mills employ 7,391 people. Singh stated in a separate response that the National Technical Textiles Mission has authorised 168 research projects, one of which is a firefighting suit made in the country. India’s exports of technical textiles reached Rs. 24,732.68 crore (US $ 2.86 billion) in FY ’25, he said, up from Rs. 16,100.51 crore (US $ 1.86 billion) in FY ’21. Their exports grew 15.53% in FY ’21 and about 11% faster over the preceding four years.
