The textile industry has sought immediate release of refunds under various government schemes to ease the liquidity crunch faced by manufacturers and exporters.
In a joint memorandum presented by seven national-level textile associations and major export promotion councils to the Union Government, the industry said that since the units are facing acute liquidity issues, the government should take steps to release the refund arrears under programmes such as ROSL/ROSCTL, Duty Drawback scheme, GST refunds, and Technology Upgradation Fund scheme.
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) held meetings with the textile associations across the country and facilitated the formation of a national committee for textiles and clothing representing the entire textile value chain.
The committee has short-listed measures that the Centre must take to revive the industry. T. Rajkumar, chairman, CITI, said the associations had submitted their demands to the Textile Minister and that it hopes to meet the Finance and Commerce Ministers soon.
The other demands of the industry include two years’ moratorium for repayment of principal loan amount without any cap on borrowings. The Remission of Duties or Taxes on Export Product (RoDTEP) scheme should cover all products in the textile value chain as it is reimbursement of duties and taxes paid. The 3% interest subvention scheme for export products should be raised to 5% for all textile and clothing products.
Steps are also needed to revive domestic and export sales. The government should take steps to control garment imports from countries such as Bangladesh and Vietnam that affect the domestic value chain. Guidelines for schemes such as TUFS and Export Promotion Capital Goods should be simplified. Further, any policy should remain stable for 3-5 years, the industry said.
