The ministry also said, to soften the Covid blows to farmers, 1.22 crore Kisan Credit Cards have been sanctioned under a special saturation drive, with a total credit limit of Rs 1,02,065 crore. Banks’ loan disbursement to mostly MSMEs under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) exceeded Rs 1 lakh crore since its roll-out on June 1, while sanctioned credit stood at over Rs 1.5 lakh crore, the finance ministry said on Thursday, highlighting the success of the programme. As of August 18, public Sector Banks (PSBs) sanctioned loans of Rs 76,044 crore under the scheme, out of which Rs 56,483 crore was disbursed. Similarly, private banks dibursed Rs 45,762 crore, out of the sanctioned loans of Rs 74,715 crore, the ministry said. Under the ECLGS, announced as part of the government’s Rs 21 lakh-crore relief package in May, the Centre has pledged full guarantee for up to 20% extra, collateral-free working capital loans, subject to an overall limit of Rs 3 lakh crore. While the scheme was initially meant for only MSMEs, the govenrment, earlier this month, decided to relax the eligibility criteria to cover professionals and enable a wider pool of businesses to benefit from it. Not surprsingly, SBI led the pack of state-run lenders with disbursement of Rs 17,095 crore, followed by Punjab National Bank (Rs 7,197 crore), Canara Bank (Rs 6,556 crore) and Bank of Baroda (Rs 5,937 crore). The states that witnessed most of the disbursement by the PSBs were Maharashtra (Rs 6,007 crore), Tamil Nadu (Rs 5,694 crore), Uttar Pradesh (Rs 5,554 crore), Gujarat (Rs 5,159 crore) and Karnataka (Rs 3,590 crore). The ministry also said, to soften the Covid blows to farmers, 1.22 crore Kisan Credit Cards have been sanctioned under a special saturation drive, with a total credit limit of Rs 1,02,065 crore. “This will go a long way in reviving the rural economy and accelerating agricultural growth,” the ministry said. While announcing the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Package, the government had declared a concessional credit of Rs 2 lakh crore, which was estimated to benefit 2.5 crore farmers, including fishermen and dairy farmers. Farmers who take loans through KCC card are also eligible for cover under the crop insurance scheme. No collateral is required for loans up to Rs 1.6 lakh from SBI. This drive came as a boost to kharif sowing, which typically starts from June, with the arrival of seasonal monsoon showers. As for the ECLGS, after expanding its scope in August, the government had estimated that additional beneficiaries could be sanctioned guaranteed loans of about Rs one lakh crore, although there is no review of the scheme’s overall credit limit (Rs three lakh crore). As part of its expanded coverage, companies with an annual turnover limit of up to Rs 250 crore are now eligible to tap the scheme, against that of Rs 100 crore earlier, in sync with the revised definition of the MSMEs. Even individuals such as doctors, chartered accountants, lawyers, etc, who wish to take loans for professional purposes, are now covered under the scheme. Similarly, eligible businesses with up to Rs 50 crore outstanding as of February 29, instead of Rs 25 crore earlier, can avail of the additional guaranteed loans. The government has earmarked a corpus of Rs 41,600 crore over the current and the next three financial years to implement the ECLGS. As many as 45 lakh units may benefit from the scheme, according to a government estimate.
Source: Financial Express
The government is looking to develop a single online compliance framework for India Inc to enable companies to comply with dierent regulatory requirements at one go, an oicial privy to the development said. “The idea is to reduce compliance burden,” a senior government oicial told ET. The corporate aairs ministry has initiated discussions with various regulators including the Reserve Bank ofIndia, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, on the possibility of creating a single platform or compliance forms with common data sources, the oicial said. Coming after other key initiatives such as one nation one tax, and faceless assessment under income tax, the move is expected to signicantly boost ease of doing business in the country. The objective of the proposed single platform would be to integrate databases of the corporate aairs ministry (MCA) and other bodies to bring down duplication in ling, the oicial said. “This will help in ease of doing business.” Companies at present have to make multiple lings. Dierent regulators have dierent requirements and formats for submission of data. Once the common platform is in place, companies can le all their data in one place and regulators can get their data from one source, experts said. “There should be a single repository from which all regulators can pull the required data,” said Pavan Vijay, founder of business advisory rm Corporate Professionals. “Some regulators may require additional information which they can request separately, but 80-90% of their requirements they should get from this single repository,” he said. “This will reduce time and compliance cost,” Vijay said. It will also reduce the scope to manipulate information being sent to dierent regulators in order to comply with different regulations or to avoid taxes, he said. A new company now automatically gets a permanent account number without having to make a separate application due to integration of the income tax and corporate aairs platforms as also nine more services including provident fund registration. MCA is now keen to integrate various other platforms to ensure that companies are saved from the task of multiple lings with multiple bodies including the regulators. Trade Receivables Discounting System (Treds) for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) is also being integrated. In the proposed single platform, there can be an auto-ll system which pulls the required data from MCA-21, an egovernance initiative to enable easy access to MCA services. The ministry is also working on version three of MCA-21, further simplifying user-interface, that would be rolled out from September next year, said the oicial quoted earlier. The government is keen to reduce compliance burden in all areas as part of the ease of doing initiative and to make the country attractive for foreign investors. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had last week rolled out faceless or jurisdiction-free income-tax assessment and appeal that will eliminate any physical interface with a tax oicer. India had rolled out the goods and services tax in July 2017 to replace multiple taxes at central and state level. Ease of doing business remains a key priority for the government and a host of steps are in the pipeline to make the country break into the top 50 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index. India’s rank had jumped 14 notches to 63, among 190 countries, in the index in 2019.
Source: Economic Times
At a time when the country's economy took a severe jolt due to Covid-19 lockdown, the flagship Prime Minister Employment Generation Program (PMEGP) implemented by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) progressed at a much rapid pace. Thanks to a major decision of the Ministry of MSME introducing a new&faster mechanism in approving the PMEGP projects, the approval of projects during the first five months of this financial year, i.e. from April 1, 2020 to August 18, 2020, increased by a whopping 44%. Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), has approved and forwarded 1.03 lakh project applications to the financing banks as compared to 71,556 projects during the corresponding period last year and thus registering a jump of 44%. PMEGP is the flagship employment generation program of the Central government and KVIC is the nodal agency for implementing the scheme. The Ministry on April 28, this year amended the guidelines to do away with the role of the District Level Task Force Committee (DLTFC) in approving the PMEGP projects. The role of DLTFC, headed by the District Collectors, was time consuming. As such, the swift execution of projects under PMEGP and KVIC was demanding doing away with the same as this important scheme required greater priority. As per the amended guidelines, KVIC, the nodal agency for implementing PMEGP scheme, was entrusted the task of clearing the applications from prospective entrepreneurs and forward it to the Banks for taking credit decisions. During the period from April to August in 2020, financing banks sanctioned 11,191 projects and Rs 345.43 crore margin money was disbursed to applicants as compared to Rs 276.09 crore margin money disbursed for 9161 projects in the first five months of previous year, i.e. 2019. The number of sanctioned projects by banks thus increased by 22% while the disbursement of margin money by KVIC increased by 24% as compared to previous year. The faster implementation of PMEGP projects this year assumes greater significance as the entire country was under lockdown for most part of these five months. The higher number of projects also signifies the government’s resolve to create selfemployment and sustainable livelihood for the people by promoting local manufacturing. KVIC Chairman Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena said the massive jump in approval of PMEGP projects is a result of the Prime Minister’s call for “Minimum Government, Maximum Governance”. “Discontinuing the role of District Collectors has ensured swift implementation of the projects. However, the banks must also expedite the process of sanctioning funds so as to benefit the maximum number of applicants. Timely disbursal of funds is crucial for execution of projects and creating employment in the country,” Saxena said.
Source: PIB
One of the world's largest aquaculture service companies, Garware Technical Fibres is trying to set itself apart from the pack with hefty investment in new products and an eye to innovation. The India-based company, perhaps better known for its involvement in the fishing industry, is also heavily invested in aquaculture with a leading market share across the global salmon sector in British Columbia, Scotland, Norway and Chile, Country Manager for Norway, Paal Korneliussen told IntraFish. Starting life as a technical textile company, Garware has harnessed its knowledge of fibres to create netting that reduces fouling, escapes and lice along with the need for cleaning and hence can help shrink costs that impact the bottom line of every salmon producer. The base for Garware's new technology V2 nets, ropes and lice skirts is its own yarn to which it adds nanoparticles of metallic copper that are aimed to significantly reduce fouling and seaweed adhesion. The result is nets that last 50 percent longer between each cleaning cycle, says Korneliussen, who began with the company in the fall of last year. Garware Country Manager for Norway Paal Korneliussen. The Indian net and rope manufacturer has the aquaculture sector high on its agenda. By embedding the copper in the net, it also reduces copper sedimentation in the seabed, which can occur with regular antifouling paints available in the market. The copper effect in the nets lasts 4-5 years and is also used in Garware's lice skirts, a stretch of fabric added around the circumference of the net pen at the top where sealice most happily dwell. Land-based salmon production: Experts answer the big questions on why and how it will succeed And here too, Garware has seen fit to innovate, identifying issues with traditional lice skirt materials, which while blocking sea lice, can also block oxygen. "We have come up with a mesh with tiny, tiny holes that block sea lice and larvae but allow oxygen-rich water to still get through," said Korneliussen. The added benefit of this, he said, is that you can use deeper skirts in the water. "Now our lice skirts allow for 10 meters depth, but we are looking at 15 meters also," he said. The basis of Garware's new offerings is High Density Poly Ethylene (HDPE) which makes for stronger nets, reduces escapes and allows pens to remain in use for a much longer time than conventional nylon nets. HDPE also has a lower carbon footprint than other potential materials, said Korneliussen, adding this is something CEOs increasingly "want to listen to". And "what CEOs want to listen to" has become the mantra of the company. "What are the pain points?" asks Korneliussen. "This is where we can innovate."
Source: Intrafish
Apparel retailers have limited stock, mostly what remained unsold since March when the country went into the lockdown. For smartphone and electronics rms, demand has outstripped supplies, especially in products priced below Rs 15,000, negating the need for big discounts. In categories such as television, the discounts are the lowest in at least five years, as a component shortage is affecting their production and supplies. Top lifestyle and consumer electronics companies are offering some of the lowest discounts in recent years in the ongoing end-of-season sale period, both at stores and online. The companies expect the trend to continue in the festive season as well, as they are either low on stock or demand is reviving faster than supplies. Apparel retailers have limited stock, mostly what remained unsold since March when the country went into the lockdown. For smartphone and electronics rms, demand has outstripped supplies, especially in products priced below Rs 15,000, negating the need for big discounts. In categories such as television, the discounts are the lowest in at least five years, as a component shortage is aecting their production and supplies. "In this situation, people won't step out and shop even if there is a discount. The industry is seeing one of the lowest discounting periods at stores as well as online," said J Suresh, the chief executive at Arvind Fashions that sells brands such as Calvin Klein, Gap and US Polo Assn. "Festive season will have a few promotional oers, but not reduced pricetags,” he said. Most retailers are witnessing around 30-50% of their average pre-pandemic sales at stores, with consumers cutting back on discretionary spends and buying only what is needed. While footfalls are picking up, retailers also don’t want crowds at stores amid continuing worry over Covid-19. "We do not want to create heavy footfall or derail social-distancing norms at stores, so are extremely conscious of the discount given," Puma India managing director Abhishek Ganguly said. The footwear and apparel company has delayed some planned launches to manage inventory. While brands expect sales to pick up during the festive season, their merchandise buying was severely curtailed, especially for discretionary products, over the past four months as stores were shut and factories closed. This meant, unlike earlier years, they are not stuck with old unsold stock, which are usually liquidated during end of season sales, twice a year. "What was fresh on the 1st of March before we ran into Covid is very fresh inventory on the 1st of August. We didn't evengo through the discounting cycling, which we normally do and therefore, extended the life of it (stock),” Aditya Birla Fashion managing director Ashish Dikshit told analysts last week. US retailer Walmart in its earnings call earlier this week said sales at its Flipkart e-tailer unit in India had exceeded preCovid-19 levels since it resumed operations three months ago. Flipkart and rival Amazon did not respond to emails seeking comment on discounts. Brands that sell on the ecommerce platforms said discounts had come down during the online promotional event last week. TCNS Clothing that sells brands such as W and Aurelia said deep discounts available online are now mostly restricted to the private labels of sellers. "It makes no sense for any oers. We see a lower discounting trend culture," managing director Anant Kumar Daga said at an investor call. The festive season — from Onam to Diwali — accounts for 40-45% of annual sales of most electronics companies. And they say demand could continue to exceed supply over the next few months. "In such a scenario, the pricing is likely to hold during the festive period," said a spokesperson at Xiaomi India, the country's largest smartphone brand. Also, over the years, brands have bridged the pricing parity between online and online and price-tags are now mostly similar at both channels. Kamal Nandi, the business head at Godrej Appliances and the president of consumer electronics manufacturers body CEAMA, said the partnerships of the brands have become stronger with ecommerce marketplaces during the pandemic and they are maintaining prices. "The conflict between channels on discounting has disappeared," he said.
Source: Economic Times
“Whatever we may profess, the actions of nations during times of crisis determine how the world really perceives them, and they did bring up many of the risks inherent in the current global economy, he said in an address to the Roundtable Meeting of ASEAN-India Network of Think Tanks. In a veiled but clear reference to reduce dependency on China, External Aairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday indicated that “strategic autonomy” in global supply chains has now become relevant after certain “inherent risks to the global economy” surfaced during this time of crisis. “Whatever we may profess, the actions of nations during times of crisis determine how the world really perceives them, and they did bring up many of the risks inherent in the current global economy. Consequently, concerns about supply chains are sought to be mitigated at the very least through greater emphasis on their diversication and resilience,” he said in an address to the Roundtable Meeting of ASEAN-India Network of Think Tanks. ET had reported on Wednesday that India, Japan and Australia are working on launching a trilateral Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI) to reduce dependence on China. The idea is to open the initiative to ASEAN countries as well. “The concept of strategic autonomy that was once fashionable in a unipolar world has now assumed relevance once again in terms of global supply chains,” said Jaishankar. The External Aairs Minister recalled the critical role ASEAN played in bringing India into the globalisation process. “But as it comes under stress today, we need to go beyond its economic and even social denitions. Globalization may be reected as trade, travel and nancial ows. But in reality, it is something very much larger. In fact, what the pandemic has brought out is the indivisible aspect of human existence that underpins globalization.” Jaishankar suggested it’s imperative to have more positive and practical models of cooperation to overcome challenges. “For India today, this means among other things, the urgent requirement to strengthen its national capacities. It also underlines the importance of de-risking critical aspects of societal existence, specially health. And at the same time, complementing the domestic priority of building an employment generating economy, not just a prot generating one. We call it Atmanirbhar Bharat—self-reliant India.” The irony, however, is that just when multilateralism was most in demand, it did not rise to the occasion, the minister rued. “Indeed, if one goes beyond organizations and structures, this was even more evident in the individual behaviour of many states. Therefore, the big issue that confronts the thinking world is not simply the state of the economy, the damage to societies or the challenges to governance. It is actually a debate on the future directions of global aairs and what kind of world order—or disorder—we are going to live in.” Expressing similar sentiments and closer partnership with India on the issue of supply chain, Thai deputy PM and foreign minister Don Pramudwinai, who also addressed the Round Table noted, “The Asean-India Strategic Partnership should be taken forward at this critical time, threaded together by a simple yet powerful word spelled S-H-A-R-E, or SHARE. The rst letter S refers to supply chain connectivity. As key players in the global supply chain, Asean and India need to ensure that the ow of essential goods, in particular food and medical supplies, is unhindered, and that investment and business travel can be facilitated. As India is seeking to become a stronger, more selfreliant country under the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative, ASEAN stands ready to work with India in supporting our key industries and integrating them into the global supply chain.”
Source: Economic Times
The celebration of National Handloom Day this year went beyond mere hashtags. The Ministry of Textiles declared the termination of the handloom, powerloom, wool, jute and silk boards causing widespread chatter, as if these bodies were the only saviours and protectors of these textiles for decades. Set up by Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, and later headed by Pupul Jayakar, the All India Handicrafts & Handloom Board flourished when headed by these passionately committed women. In 1990, the textile minister made himself the chairperson and nominated caste and political cronies, forgetting representation from Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast, and adding one token woman. Many subsequent regimes never held meetings. The Handloom Board never influenced policy, improved approaches or even removed a speck of dust. A termite-ridden body cannot be renovated as some would wish. It has to be dismantled. But demolitions must lead to building a better institution, not banish the voice of the weavers concerned. It has to be replaced by a well-chosen modern, dynamic, autonomous and inclusive body of genuinely experienced and credible voices from the handloom-weaving chain, including spinners, weavers, dyers, designers, private and public craft institutions, e-market platform providers and experts. The government must also learn to listen, hear dissent, discuss and engage with such bodies without lecturing, nominating or dominating — in short, there should be less government, more people. State handloom boards (wherever they exist) are not enough as their outreach and vision are limited to the state and responses often depend on vote shares. The Centre must be the receptacle for many senior weavers and experts who have national credibility, experience and vision. A national view must be informed by national inputs: Cooperative federalism must mean a chain linking everyone. More significantly, the Handloom Day announcements at a video meeting by the minister and secretary, textiles laid out an entirely new approach to development. For old hands in the field, these look like a strange mixture of the good, the bad, but are mostly foggy. Under good, with caveats, would come Atmanirbhar Bharat, which involves the integration of plans with other ministries like Tourism. Other ministries/departments such as the MEA/ICCR, culture, social justice, women & child welfare, minority affairs and KVIC should also be included. All these ministries touch textiles and crafts and often, their functioning results in duplicating and overlapping rather than effectively integrating with the Ministry of Textiles. The prime minister spoke of breaking ministry silos in 2014, but nothing is visible on the ground. The Handloom Mark is emphasised, but methods for ensuring its purity are not clear. It should not go the way of bogus artisan cards which include tea sellers and traders. National Institute of Fashion Technology students and faculty are to guide nine Weavers’ Service Centres. This is a good move for their resuscitation as many have potential. Highlighting handloom pockets is a positive step, but there is a danger of seeking large “clusters”. How will they be identified and what about important though small pockets of rare skills? Will they fall between the cracks because “small is not beautiful” anymore? Special promotional campaigns were announced. These are badly needed but not in the form of unimaginative, old-worldly advertisements. Excellent India-centric graphic designer groups have done a much better job and should be promoted, rather than co-opted under the rigid government system. Highly talented and committed professionals from the design community are kept out because they aren’t from NIFT, NID or otherwise “empanelled” repeatedly. These groups did a yeoman job for promoting weavers during COVID-19. Their efforts should not go unnoticed. Information technology is undoubtedly the new “king”, but if weavers have to avail of all knowledge from a special handloom portal, they need connectivity, computers and digital knowledge. Only the corporate sector or government can rely on IT access for everything. “Maximum Governance, Minimum Government” is still a pipe dream. If you seek government support in any manner, it can be a fly trap and become a “shun government” slogan for weavers and NGOs who have some self-respect. Open-mindedness, less red tape, and inclusiveness are imperative. IT does not guarantee integrity or equality. The worst of the announcements was the declaration of intent to sell handlooms at “the highest price at the highest level” and “not cheap cloth but most expensive cloth”. It sounded almost anti-Gandhian. The prime minister’s call of “Local to Global” clearly indicates a bottom-up approach from production to marketing. This is the only way migrants will stay home. Local production for local markets is a brilliant strategy and needs encouragement. The poor man’s cloth has been taken over by powerlooms. Selling expensive cloth to the wealthiest will shrink, not expand the market. Instead, many levels of markets have to be targeted with different products for each segment. Extensive and detailed discussions were held to develop the New Education Policy. The Kasturirangan Report, prepared with inputs from high-level experts, is the basis for the New Education Policy. In the case of the textiles sector, what happened to the Satyam and Ajai Shankar committee reports? What about the inputs from the few meetings that were held before COVID-19 arrived? Can one hope that the government will facilitate frank and balanced discussions involving stakeholders and if necessary, subject the plans to review?
Source: Indian Express
Over Rs 1 lakh crore worth of loans have been disbursed under the government-backed emergency credit line guarantee scheme (ECLGS) until Tuesday, according to data from the finance ministry. A while public sector banks (PSBs) disbursed loans totaling Rs 56,483 crore, private banks disbursed Rs 45,762 crore taking the total amount to Rs 1.02 lakh crore, said a release on Thursday. The total amount was disbursed to 23.4 lakh accounts out of which PSBs accounted for 20.3 lakh accounts. A bank-wise break up showed the top three lenders under the scheme were the State Bank of India (SBI NSE 3.13 %) with a disbursement of Rs 17,095 crore, followed by Punjab National Bank NSE 2.85 %’s (PNB) Rs 7,197 crore and Canara Bank at Rs 6,556 crore. In terms of the number of accounts these amounts were disbursed to, SBI made up for 2.99 lakh while PNB and Canara Bank accounted for 1.73 lakh and 3.84 lakh accounts respectively. The finance ministry also provided a state-wise breakup of the data which showed that Maharashtra received the highest amount of disbursements at Rs 6,007 crore reaching 1.66 lakh accounts. Second in line was Tamil Nadu, receiving Rs 5,694 crore in 2.26 lakh accounts followed by Uttar Pradesh’s Rs 5,554 crore to 2.28 lakh accounts.
Source: Economic Times
The official logo of Labour Bureau, an attached office of Ministry of Labour and Employment, was launched here today by Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State (I/C) for Labour and Employment in the presence of Shri Heeralal Samariya, Secretary, MoL&E and Shri D.P.S. Negi, Director General Labour Bureau & Senior Officers of Ministry at Shram Shakti Bhawan, to visually communicate the vision and objectives of the Bureau. While lauding the efforts Labour Minister mentioned that Labour Bureau was established as a Directorate of Cost of Living at Shimla in the year 1941 with the objective of conducting Family Budget Enquiries and compiling Cost of Living Index Numbers for important centers in the country on a uniform basis. The need for more comprehensive labour statistics in the context of formulation of labour policy led to the setting up of the Labour Bureau on October 1, 1946 by rechristening the Directorate of Cost of Living with added functions. Since then Labour Bureau is engaged in collection, compilation, analysis and dissemination of statistics on different facets of labour at All India level. Shri Gangwar asked Labour Bureau to increase its outreach by way of total Digitalization of its processes & use of Data Analytics & Artificial Intelligence in its day to day operations. Shri Gangwar underlined the importance of data base in policy making. He called for increased use of Information Technology to make available greater and more accurate data at within a very short time. Stressing the need for soon moving on to paperless working, Minister expressed confidence that digitisation and artificial intelligence will also help in collection & analysis of a large data in much less time. He further said that as Government is working in providing employment, the accurate data becomes very crucial for this purpose. On this occasion both Minister & Secretary (L&E) told to media persons that century old 44 Labour acts are being subsumed in four codes, out of this wage code is already enacted & three codes i.e. The Social Security, Industrial relations & occupational Safety, Health and working conditions have already been Introduced in Lok Sabha and once enacted India’s ranking on “Ease of doing business” will go very high and India will be a dream destination for Investment and Labour Bureau should collect data in Seamless way for this necessary provisions in codes & rules will be provided to give Statutory Powers to Labour Bureau. Labour Secretary also called upon Labour Bureau to gear up for 100 per cent digitisation and ensuring tracking investigators and surveyors. He asked the Bureau to prepare for data collection in the light of Labour Law reforms which may require changes in forms and types of data collection and methodologies. The newly launched logo represents that Labour Bureau is a data based organization dealing in data related to workers and work. The logo also represents the three goals that Labour Bureau strives to achieve in producing quality data i.e. Accuracy, Validity and Reliability. Blue wheel is a cog wheel representing work, choice of blue colour Sinifies that we deal with blue collar workers, the graph is not going up words alone as in real world data has ups & downs because it captures ground reality. A tricolored Graph, matching the colors of the National flag, along with wheat ears, signifying the fruit of rural agricultural labour, has been beautifully placed in the logo. The mandate of Labour Bureau is to act as a storehouse of important economic indicators like Consumer Price Index for Industrial worker, Agriculture & Rural Labour Numbers for Industrial, Agricultural and Rural Labourers; wage rate indices and data on employment/ unemployment, industrial relations, socio-economic conditions in the organized and unorganized sector of industry etc. The Labour Bureau is a Apex National Level organization in the field of labour statistics which performs significant functions such as Labour Intelligence, Research, Monitoring/evaluation & training.
Source: PIB
Hear the word 'Chendamangalam' and it echoes with the hues of handloom weaves, traditions and culture. Boost for Kerala’s handloom village Chendamangalam! ‘Save the Loom’ has launched a unique initiative of naturally dyed handwoven textiles using extracts from Kerala’s rich floral diversity. Days ahead of Kerala’s much loved festival Onam, the handloom village is back in the spotlight. Hear the word ‘Chendamangalam’ and it echoes with the hues of handloom weaves, traditions and culture. During Kerala’s devastating floods in 2018, the news about Chendamangalam’s weavers and their huge losses had catapulted the plight of its handloom weavers into national spotlight. In fact, the tragedies that fell upon its weavers had shattered their hopes of a better life. With the Onam festive season, Keralites across the globe typically celebrate by gifting ‘Onakodi’ to their loved ones, particularly family members with handloom weaves. This Onam may be an exception to this practice as people are wary of moving out to shop or buy ‘Onakodi’ in any of the malls or shops. ‘WithYouChendamangalam’ trends during Kerala floods Few may remember how the hashtag ‘#WithYouChendamangalam’ began trending amidst Kerala floods in 2018. With celebrities tweeting about Chendamangalam weavers, the need to restore normalcy became essential. Kerala’s celebrities, actors and fashion designers came forward to support the cause of the weavers whose dreams and hopes for a stable livelihood were shattered when everything was destroyed in the 2018 Kerala floods. According to a report cited by ‘Save the Loom’, Kerala government’s District Industries Centre had pegged an immediate loss of Rs 4 crores to Chendamangalam while Rs 15 crores was pegged by weaving societies and analysts as the total estimation of damage caused, taking into account factors including factors including post flood recovery time, direct as well as indirect loss to the weavers. Restoring normalcy to Chendamangalam handloom weavers Undoubtedly, preserving the handloom ecosystem has been a top priority for Chendamangalam. While ongoing efforts continue and much needs to be done, it comes as a boost for weavers of the region that ‘Save the loom’ has launched ‘Amalda’ in collaboration with Clothes without Borders. This is its first series of naturally dyed textiles from the weavers of Chendamangalam. This continuing series is set to highlight handwoven textiles using extracts as well as variants from Kerala’s rich floral diversity. More details are being updated on ‘Save the loom’ on its social media pages, which highlight how the team is also working with experts to come up with new methodologies and processes to identify indigenous plants that can yield natural dye compounds and their biochemical properties. Notably, Kerala has over 4600 varieties of flowering plants. What happened in Chendamangalam during Kerala floods? Around 300 weavers became jobless during the Kerala floods. A key factor to consider is that 90 per cent of the workforce comprise of women, mostly above the age of 50 years and single earning member of their family. Given the impact on their lives, several organisations came forward to restore their looms, of which ‘Save the Loom’ has also played a pivotal role in Chendamangalam. Which were Chendamangalam’s worst hit areas? According to local reports, the worst hit areas are Karimbadam and Kuryapilli. It cites that thread worth around Rs 39 lakhs had been damaged at a yarn bank in Karimpadam, with its central dyeing unit being destroyed too. The destruction plunged weavers into utter despair and it took tremendous efforts and campaigns on social media to bring them back to a certain degree of normalcy today.
Source: Financial Express
Kaushal Padshala, owner of Raj Textiles at Sachin GIDC, who runs electronic jacquard machines power loom machines, booked six flight tickets -- four from Varanasi in UP and two from Patna -- to bring back technicians and operators. Textile industry businessmen in Surat are flying in their workers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha trained to operate Jacquard looms to meet the demands for the upcoming festive season, as trains are running packed from these states. In the past one week, 40 migrant workers were flown to Surat and many more are coming, said a textile industry source. Kaushal Padshala, owner of Raj Textiles at Sachin GIDC, who runs electronic jacquard machines power loom machines, booked six flight tickets — four from Varanasi in UP and two from Patna — to bring back technicians and operators. “I came to Surat on Monday by flight… Our owner arranged for it as trains running from UP are running packed. He bought us flight tickets and also arranged taxi to pick us up from Surat airport,” said Shivchander Chauhan, 42, from Varanasi in UP who has been working in Padshala’s factory for five years. Talking to The Indian Express, Kaushal Padshala said, “The electronic jacquard machines are costly and I have over 90 such machines in my factory. My factory was shut for five months and now we are facing problems with starting the machines. Hence we decided to spend on flight tickets to get back the migrant workers who are experts in operating them. I have spent between Rs 6,000 to Rs 6,500 per head. Once the machine gets operational, I can bring in other workers. If the machines remains shut for a few more months, I may end up spending huge amount to repair them.” A Jacquard loom can create patterns while weaving and thus add value to the product. “We have started receiving orders from other states and to meet the demand, we have to get the machines operational. The total strength of migrant workers in my factory is 180 and at present I have 20 operators and technicians. Will first start all the machines and later bring in other workers,” he added. Textile and diamond industries in Surat were shut down since April due to the Covid19 pandemic. The labourers in the textile industry are mostly from UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand and Odisha. Federation of Gujarat Weavers’ Association president, Ashok Jirawala, said, “At present only 30 per cent of the powerloom factories is operational in day shift, with 20 per cent production. The industry is looking to meet the upcoming demands and is putting in all efforts to bring back labourers to Surat. Over 10 lakh labourers left Surat when the industry shut due to the pandemic.” Hiren Mawani, who runs a textile factory at Pandesara GIDC, said, “I have 60 electronic jacquard machines in my factory and to restart them, we need experts. I bought six flight tickets from Patna to Delhi to Mumbai for machine operators and technicians who arrived two days ago. I also sent a car to Mumbai airport to ferry them to Surat. We have also given them Rs 5,000 each to buy rations for now.” Pointing out that out of the 350 dyeing and printing houses, only 125 are working now with 40 per cent production, South Gujarat Textile Procession Association president, Jitu Vakhariya, said, “The factories that are partially operational, are running on tremendous loss. We have requested the central government to start free train services from UP, Bihar and Odisha to tide over the labour crunch in textile industry.”
Source: Indian Express
Distortions and inefficiencies in Pakistan's energy sector and their consequential impact on consumers and businesses are not new to debates concerning sustained economic growth of the country. The fallout of high energy tariffs and the circular debt crisis on the textile industry - Pakistan's single largest contributor to exports (60%), manufacturing sector employment (40%) and banking credit (40%) - needs immediate attention and addressal for sustainable growth in exports and employment. This call to action was recently made by the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) to the Standing Committee of National Assembly (NA) on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs in a recent event with sitting officials, leading industrialists, manufacturers and journalists in attendance. The extremely harmful impacts of the energy sector crisis, circular debt buildup and the high electricity tariffs on the economy and textile sector were deliberated upon in detail. The power sector has been a significant constraint on growth in Pakistan in recent years. While on one hand, transmission and distribution (T&D) losses of up to 30% create inefficiencies and bottlenecks in the system, arrears mounting in circular debt to the magnitude of Rs.2.22 trillion imply a perennially burdened national exchequer. The vicious cycle of circular debt - whereby distribution utilities struggling to collect revenues and meet regulatory targets for transmission and distribution losses default on their payments to generators, and the government periodically bails out the sector once losses accumulate to intolerable levels - has severe implications for the Pakistani economy. This dynamic not only undermines incentives for utilities to improve their efficiency while discouraging investors from investing in new capacity to address supply shortages, but also comes at a high cost to the national exchequer and consumers and businesses to whom all inefficiencies are passed in the form of higher energy tariffs. The result is reduced security of supply, access and affordability for consumers and investors, regionally uncompetitive exports and a crippling economy with high cost inflation and balance of payment problems. Furthermore, the DISCOs resort to ineffective solutions such as revenue-based load-shedding only means that compliant customers and industries bear the brunt of heightened tariffs. Not only this may be constitutionally improper but could also be termed a collective punishment a la 'FCR'. The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of universal access to power has been completely forgotten in the revenue based load shedding, and DISCOs now take the easy way out of suspending power supply to areas with high loss and collection - a situation not understandable in a country with excess power capacity. So, what are the direct implications of energy inefficiencies on the textile sector and textile-export led growth? The plight of textiles vis-à-vis the power sector is underlined by at least three factors. Firstly, the implementation of unreasonable energy tariffs, coupled with the abolishment of tax subsidies for zero-rated companies, has resulted in increased cost of business and reduced profitability for businesses. The textile industry of Pakistan is burdened with the highest energy tariffs in the region - electricity at 13.3 cents/kwh and gas at $6.5 / MMBTU - which is significantly higher than other regional players such as India and Bangladesh (comparable values at 7.2 cents/kwh and 7 cents/kwh, and $3.2/ MMBTU respectively). The potential economic impact of regionally uncompetitive tariffs on the Small & Medium Enterprise (SME) sector, the driving force of the economy, is particularly devastating. Between the existing and the regionally competitive power tariffs of 13.3 cents/kwh (~Rs. 18.5/kwh) and 7.5 cents/kwh (~ Rs. 12/kwh), the annual differential in tariffs for SMEs works out to Rs. 23 billion. This represents 30% of the conversion cost and 10% of final cost of the value of production, with a total worth of Rs. 230 billion. Even by conservative estimates, this production is expected to feed intermediate products for exports valued at approximately $3.5 billion. By way of a simple cost-benefit analysis, the potential loss in exports worth $3.5 billion far outweighs the cost of decrease in tariff of Rs. 23 billion. Given the fierce competition in the international export market and Pakistan's dire need to sustain, if not expand, exports, the threat of higher electricity ring alarm bells. The SME sector is already grossly disadvantaged due to non-availability of subsidized credit, inaccessibility of import for re-export schemes and multiple duplicity of taxes, additional costs due to higher electricity tariff will price them out of the market. Secondly, with the applicability of turnover tax on the textile sector and its multiplicity at every step of the supply chain, Pakistan's textile exports are losing international competitiveness. The tax also creates severe liquidity crunches for the industry. Thirdly, and relatedly, the absence of a long term, consistent and favorable textile policy implies that the business environment is unlikely to be viable for existing and new investors. Not surprisingly, the resultant impact of these factors combined is that textile companies in Pakistan have increasingly become regionally uncompetitive compared to counterparts in South Asia such as India and Bangladesh. It is worth noting that the current contribution of textiles to Pakistan's GDP is only 8.5% whereas the textile export contribution of India and Bangladesh in GDP stands at 20% and 15%, respectively.The existing and potential economic losses accruing as a consequence of these factors are startling. Exports currently account for 8.79% of Pakistan's GDP whereas the exacting demand for a sustainable external account is for the ratio to nearly double to 15%. The textile industry, currently constituting 8.5% of Pakistan's total GDP at approximately $13 billion in exports has the capacity to double the latter to $26 billion, provided the afore-mentioned impediments to production and export are removed. On the positive side the country's textile manufactures recently reported revived export orders as the world gradually recovers from the COVID-crisis and surfaces back to normal. According to statistics, textile exports in quantity terms had increased by as much as 30% during the pandemic and, with favorable policies and prices in place, have the potential to reach $30 billion in 4 years. This loss in potential exports and GDP is too large for Pakistan to ignore. The question remains: if favorable policies and tariffs can render the textile industry so lucrative, what can explain the government's lack of action on this front? If the argument is that policymakers and decision makers are not fully aware of the benefits accruing to such decisions or, alternatively, are not aware of exactly what needs to be done to save the sector from doom, perhaps the industry is not doing enough in communicating and emphasizing these issues. The asks by the industry are clear: regionally competitive electricity and gas tariffs at 7.5 cents/kwh and $6.5/ MMBTU respectively for 5 years through a clearly vision-ed long term textile sector policy (already approved in principle by the Prime Minister), and waiver from turnover tax (minimum tax liability) to manufacturers on exhibiting a 10% growth in textile exports. It is worth noting that the entire benefit of a tariff of 7.5 cents/kwh will accrue to the SME sector, because even at the revised tariff, larger industrial units with RLNG connections will constantly use gas and not grid power to generate power as the former would still cost them $6.5/MMBTU or roughly 7 cents/kwh at an efficiency of 35%. Alternatively, a very workable method of insulating SMEs from the adverse impact of high energy tariffs (while not contravening any World Bank and International Monetary Fund conditionality for subsidies) would be to assign one of the new RLNG plants to the industry to ensure competitively priced energy through wheeling and relieving the government of the capacity payments to the extent of the power plant directly assigned. This can be expanded further by assigning one of the imported coal plants in Karachi to the industry to additionally relieve 200-300 MMBTU of domestic gas currently used in captive power plants. While the response from the government so far has been one of promise and reassurance, we are confident that the Prime Minister and his team will surely prioritize sustained export-led growth for Pakistan and initiate a concerted effort to address concerns of the industry and implement the policies required for sustained export growth leading to a prosperous Pakistan.
Source: Brecorder
Uzbekistan's deputy PM will visit Pakistan next month to sign MOU on 'Pak-Uzbek Joint Working Group' Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood on Wednesday reiterated the government’s resolve to strengthen trade and investment relations with Uzbekistan through institutional mechanisms and private sector joint ventures. In a meeting with Charge’ D’affaires of Uzbekistan in Pakistan Sadullah Tashmatov at the Ministry of Commerce, the adviser emphasised the importance of developing connectivity for harnessing and deepening the bilateral relationship between the two countries. “Pakistan is keen to develop backward and forward linkages in the textile, leather, pharmaceutical and agriculture sector with Uzbekistan,” he maintained. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the upcoming visit of Uzbekistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Sardor Umurzakov to Pakistan. Earlier in May 2020, Dawood had invited the deputy PM to visit Pakistan along with a business delegation to discuss bilateral economic relations. During the visit, both sides will sign a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of ‘Pakistan-Uzbekistan Joint Working Group on Trade and Investment’, the inaugural session of which is also likely to be held during the visit. Both sides agreed to work together for improving connectivity, establishing banking channels and enhancing bilateral trade. In the meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister in May, discussions were held on business to business cooperation as well as utilization of Gwadar and Karachi ports for trade. All these suggestions will also be taken up in the upcoming visit next month. In addition, the Uzbek envoy discussed the development of connectivity through road, rail and air linkages between both countries. The envoy also expressed interest in the use of Sialkot International Airport for trade. Both sides agreed to explore opportunities for cooperation and were hopeful that the upcoming visit would help in ehancing bilateral trade and economic ties.
Source: Pakistan Today
Under the Phase 1 trade agreement signed in January, both governments agreed to suspend potential additional penalties on each other's goods in a fight that erupted in 2018 over Beijing's technology ambitions and trade surplus. The truce called for talks to be held after six months, but those were delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Chinese and US trade envoys will hold a meeting by phone in the near future to discuss an agreement aimed at resolving a tariff war, a Commerce Ministry spokesman said Thursday. The spokesman, Gao Feng, gave no details of the timing at a ministry news briefing. Under the Phase 1 trade agreement signed in January, both governments agreed to suspend potential additional penalties on each other’s goods in a fight that erupted in 2018 over Beijing’s technology ambitions and trade surplus. The truce called for talks to be held after six months, but those were delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. A meeting scheduled for last week was to be held online but was postponed. Both parties have agreed to hold a call in the near future, Gao said. The two governments have rolled back some penalties but most of the punitive tariffs imposed on hundreds of billions of dollars of each other’s goods remain in place.
Source: Financial Express
North Korea will hold a rare ruling party congress in January where leader Kim Jong Un will announce a new five-year plan to develop the country’s dismal economy ravaged by US-led sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic, state media said Thursday. The plans were confirmed Wednesday during a plenary meeting of the Workers’ Party’s decision-making Central Committee where Kim acknowledged economic shortcomings caused by “unexpected and inevitable challenges in various aspects and the situation in the region surrounding the Korean Peninsula.” The report by Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency didn’t directly mention nuclear diplomacy with the United States, which has stalled over disagreements in exchanging sanctions relief and denuclearization steps. The Workers’ Party last convened for a full congress in 2016, which was its first in 36 years, where Kim announced his initial five-year national development plan, which included goals for improving power supply and increasing agricultural and manufacturing production. Entering the plan’s final year, Kim during the Central Committee’s last plenary meeting in December declared a “frontal breakthrough” against sanctions while urging his nation to stay resilient in the struggle for economic self-reliance. But experts say the COVID-19 crisis has clearly derailed some of Kim’s major economic goals after North Korea imposed a lockdown that significantly reduced trade with China — its major ally and economic lifeline — and likely hampered its ability to mobilize its workforce. It’s also possible Kim could use the party congress, which would take place after the US presidential election in November, to announce a new foreign policy approach toward the United States and rival South Korea. Kim’s economic setbacks have left him with nothing to show for his high-stakes summitry with President Donald Trump, whom he first met in June 2018 in Singapore, where they issued an aspirational statement on a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula without describing when and how it would occur. Their diplomacy deteriorated last year in Vietnam, after their second meeting, when the Americans rejected North Korea’s demands for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities. The North has recently said it has no immediate intent to resume talks with Washington, vowing not to gift Trump with meetings he could boast as foreign policy achievements unless it gets something substantial in return. Some experts say the North would likely avoid serious negotiations with the United States before the election as it wouldn’t want to make any major concessions when there’s a chance US leadership could change.
Source: Financial Express
Japan saw its first goods trade surplus in four months in July, while exports remained sluggish with the continued impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic suppressing overseas demand, government data showed Wednesday. The country logged an 11.6 billion yen ($109 million) goods trade surplus, helped by the first increase in exports to China in seven months. Exports to Japan's largest goods trading partner rose 8.2 percent from a year earlier, according to a preliminary report by the Finance Ministry. Overall exports in July dropped 19.2 percent from a year ago to 5.37 trillion yen to mark a double-digit fall for the fifth straight month, as the continued impact of the pandemic suppressed overseas demand. Exports sagged for the 20th consecutive month. Imports posted a sharper fall of 22.3 percent, helping the world's third-largest economy log a trade surplus in the month. It was the 15th straight month of decline mainly on falling prices of crude oil imported from countries such as the United Arab Emirates and large drops in imports of liquefied natural gas and coal from Australia. The pace of decline in July exports was slower than the 28.3 percent year-on-year drop in May, the sharpest since a 30.6 percent decrease in September 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis, and 26.2 percent fall in June. In March and April, exports slid 11.7 percent and 21.9 percent, respectively. Auto-related exports, one of the Japanese economy's key components, stayed stagnant, with car exports sinking 30.0 percent, and those of car parts plunging 32.5 percent. The latest monthly drop in imports was larger than the 14.4 percent shrinkage in the previous month, which mainly reflected a recovery in shipments from China, where the world's first large-scale outbreak of the virus was detected earlier this year. As for China, Japan's exports grew to 1.33 trillion yen in the reporting month. By item, nonferrous metals such as refined copper soared 72.4 percent, while semiconductor manufacturing equipment and autos also increased 23.6 percent and 19.0 percent, respectively. Imports from the world's second-largest economy declined 9.8 percent to 1.46 trillion yen, with drops in those of clothes and auto parts offsetting rises in personal computers and textile products. The balance was 127.39 billion yen in deficit for Japan. Across Asia including China, exports were down 8.2 percent, and imports sank 13.5 percent. Steel and automobile parts exports to Thailand decreased, while liquefied natural gas imports from Malaysia declined, with Japan seeing a trade surplus of 338.17 billion yen. Exports to the United States fell 19.5 percent to 1.09 trillion yen, down for the 12th successive month. Poor sales of aircraft engine parts contributed most to the outcome, while an on-year drop in car exports was reduced to 6.7 percent compared to a 63.3 percent fall in June. Imports from the United States decreased 25.5 percent to 578.88 billion yen, down for three consecutive months, resulting in a surplus for Japan of 512.48 billion yen. With the European Union, Japan saw a trade deficit of 212.41 billion yen, as exports fell 30.5 percent to 439.26 billion yen and imports dropped 14.3 percent to 651.67 billion yen. "Economic activity has resumed and continued in European countries and the United States, as well as China, once the virus spread slowed, which bolstered Japan's exports," said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at the Norinchukin Research Institute. But Minami said that the scale of trade was still far from pre-pandemic levels, and is expected to remain weak "for the time being," citing a rekindling in U.S.-China tensions along with fear of further virus spread as factors which could cloud the outlook. "If the Chinese economy comes to a standstill due to escalating trade tensions with the United States, it will become harder for Japan's exports to grow," Minami said. All figures were compiled on a customs-cleared basis.
Source: Kyodo News
There are clear environmental benefits of eradicating textile waste using the Worn Again technology. The Worn Again textile recycling process recaptures raw materials and puts them back in production supply chains, thereby maximising the replacement of virgin resources while diverting valuable textiles and PET plastics from landfill and incineration. With our vision to eradicate textile waste, there are clear environmental benefits, as we believe that our process will use far less energy, heat, water and emit less CO2 compared to current end-of-life disposal and the production of virgin materials," says Worn Again Technologies' CEO Keith Wiggins in an interview in the August edition of Fibre2Fashion. While understanding the commercial drivers of the market, the UK-based company has been developing a cost competitive process, focused on minimising the capital and operational costs to build and run a Worn Again Technologies plant. "We want to bring our solution to market as soon as possible to meet the growing demand and for this we have developed a Circular Technology Licensing model that will enable licensees to produce top quality and environmentally beneficial PET resin and cellulosic pulp at a competitive cost, to compete effectively in the production supply chain," Wiggins adds in the interview.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
