Maharashtra clears textile policy to attract funds

In a bid to attract investments of Rs40,000 crore in the textile sector and provide employment to up to 11 lakh people, the state cabinet on Wednesday cleared the long-awaited and much-talked-about new textile policy.

For long, the government’s grouse has been that the cotton produced in the state is turned into textile in mills outside of it, leaving cotton farmers at the mercy of traders. It also means that the state gains little from the cotton thus sold. Among the key features of the new policy are interest subsidy of 12.5% and capital subsidy of 10% for private or cooperative textile units in these regions. For the rest of the state, the interest subsidy is 10.5%, of which 5% is from the Centre and the rest from Maharashtra.

Stating that the new policy, which comes for Rs450 crore cost to the state exchequer, would lead to new textile units, textile minister Mohammad Arif Khan alias Naseem Khan said, “Of the 92 lakh bales produced in the state, only 20 lakh bales (about 29%) is processed here.” Further, the policy will provide sops in areas like ginning, processing, weaving, knitting, and garment making. “The state also aims to set up textile parks, rehabilitating existing units, and developing skills to provide employability in these units,” added Khan, adding that insurance, housing, and health schemes for handlooms and powerlooms were also proposed.

In the just-concluded legislative session in Nagpur, MLAs from Bhiwandi had demanded the implementation of the new policy to prevent closure of textile units there.