The government's 'Make in India' initiative is giving a new lease of life to some relatively-unknown varieties of indigenous fabrics. Thanks to the efforts of designers and some state governments, fabrics such as ikkats and Uppada silks are being adopted and revived, as are the more popular Banarasi and khadi varieties. New Delhi-based fashion designer Anita Dongre has started an initiative which takes craftsmanship to the cities from the rural areas so that unemployed residents of villages are not forced to migrate. Dongre is trying to revive gota patti, the craft of applique, from a village near Jaipur in Rajasthan, where gold and silver fabrics are meticulously hand-cut by craftsmen and embroidered into myriad patterns with zari, which finally become bridal ensembles. These will be branded Grassroot, a sub-category of the Anita Dongre label. "We are working closely with the artisans of Naila village," said Dongre. "We have started with 50 artisans with the craft of gota patti from the village but will soon include more artisans for our community-building programme."
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Director General of Foreign Trade ( DGFT) Pravir Kumar on Friday asked Indian exporters to look for opportunities in new markets. "We are facing problems because of over dependence on very few markets including eurozone which comprises 18-19 % of the total exports. We want our exporters to look for opportunities in other markets as well and take advantage of the free trade agreements," Kumar said at the open house meet organised jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry ( CII) eastern region and Federation of India Export Organisation ( FIEO). The official also said although there are resource constraints, the country's foreign trade department is passing over the money it is receiving from the union commerce ministry as incentives to the exporters. The revenue department is trying to bring in 'a single window clearance' to ease the process for exporters, he said, emphasizing that the central government is keen to facilitate ease of doing business for the exporters. The department is also in the process of strengthening the IT backbone and do away with the system of 'manual submission' of documents which has already been filed online.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
The Commerce Ministry today asked exporters to explore business opportunities in emerging markets of Latin America and Africa in the wake of the Greek crisis. "When there are risks, it is extremely important to distribute risks and diversify elsewhere," a CII statement quoted Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Pravir Kumar as saying. Kumar was here to attend an open house meet with over 200 exporters, organised by CII and Federation of India Export Organisation (FIEO). The 19-member Eurozone accounts for 18-19 per cent of the country's total exports. Its members include Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany and Greece. He said that the government will continue providing policy direction, incentivising diversification and value-added exports. "In wake of the current turmoil in Greece, Indian exporters need to look beyond Eurozone and explore opportunities in emerging markets such as Latin America, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) nations and Africa," he said.
Greece is reeling under financial crisis and there are apprehensions that it may impact other Eurozone members. CIS countries include Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. He also asked the exporters to focus on countries with which India has implemented free trade agreement such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Further, he informed that the government is working to devise a single window clearance platform to enhance ease of doing business as part of the government's resolve to facilitate trade. "We are in the process of making our work virtually paperless," he said. Speaking at the meet, Sanjay Budhia, Chairman, CII National Committee on International Trade Policy & Exports, said that the high trade deficit of the country puts pressure on the economy. Contracting for the sixth month in a row, India's exports dipped by 20.19 per cent in May to $22.34 billion.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Textile Minister Santosh Gangwar today laid the foundation stone for an apparel and garment making centre in Aizawl, the capital of Mizoram. "The centre will be the beginning of setting up an organised industry in Mizoram," Gangwar said. Apparel and garment making centres are being opened in every state of the Northeastern region as part of the initiative announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 1, 2014. Before Mizoram, apparel and garment manufacturing centres have been set up in all other seven states of Northeastern region. This initiative comes under the North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) of the Ministry of Textiles.
NERTPS is an umbrella scheme for the development of various segments of textiles -- silk, handlooms, handicrafts and garments. Of the total outlay of Rs 1,038.10 crore, Rs 18.9 crore has been given to Mizoram for setting up of this centre where the state government provides 1.5 acres of land free of cost. The centre will be managed by the Ministry of Textiles for 5 years and will be handed over to the state government thereafter. Textiles Secretary S K Panda said that the garment making centre will provide employment to the youth of Mizoram. It will also lead a way for developing technical textile and skilled personnel which will in turn contribute to the economy of Mizoram. The Minister also inaugurated the Weavers' Service Centre which will benefit many handloom weavers in the state. Weavers' Service Centre established under the funds of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of Mizoram aims to provide technical assistance, advice, designs and marketing opportunity to all weavers and concerns in the handloom sector.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Starting Monday, July 6, in the middle of the Muslim holy month of Ramzan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit five Central Asian countries that follow the moderate Hanafi school of Islam. Modi is also scheduled to attend the BRICS (the grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summits in the Russian city of Ufa from July 9 to 10, making it the first time an Indian prime minister will attend the SCO meet. Before arriving in Ufa, Modi will visit Tashkent, the Uzbekistan capital, and Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. After his engagement in Russia, Modi will visit Bishkek, Ashgabat and Dushanbe, the capitals of Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan respectively.
Tajikistan shares a border with Pakistan occupied Kashmir which India considers its territory. India spent $70 million to built a military air base at Ayni in Tajikistan, but could not deploy fighter aircraft there under Russian pressure. India has at last shown a sense of urgency to connect with these countries, say Indian diplomats involved in the region. While negotiating energy security and mineral resources, Modi will carry with him India's soft power in the form of music, arts, Bollywood films and television serials (Balika Vadhu is a current favourite in the region) to offer, along with the lure of the huge Indian market. As and when the Chabahar port in Iran starts functioning full steam, India expects the two-way traffic with the Central Asian republics to multiply manifold. Modi, who has a penchant for aggressively marketing his foreign tours with a flourish on television and social media, will make this six-country visit a high-profile one. At the SCO summit in Russia, where Pakistan and India are likely to become member countries (currently, both nations have observer status), Modi will have an opportunity to meet his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif, whom he has kept in touch with regularly in recent months.
India and China are also likely to discuss bilateral issues on the sidelines at Ufa. On Modi's latest visit overseas, brace yourself to hear about all kinds of wonderful Central Asian linkages with India from the leaders of the host countries and the Indian prime minister. Modi's visit to Central Asia, which are intertwined with Indian history and folklore due to the spread of Buddhism and then, Islam, many centuries ago, is taking place at a time when the region is undergoing a transformation. India is a latecomer to Central Asia, a region where China has made deep inroads. With $46 billion of trade in 2014, Beijing is the biggest trading partner for four of the region's five countries. For political influence in the Central Asian republics there is, of course, none to match Russia. Until 1991 these countries were part of the erstwhile Soviet Union. Most of these republics have a large Russian population, more skilled than the natives. Interestingly, Russia has sought Pakistan's help in dealing with Central Asia, especially the worrying rise of Islamic fundamentalism in these republics. But Russia has a serious challenger for influence in China. China has settled boundary issues with Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, and its economic presence is clearly growing at Russia's expense. Beijing has no qualms about the absence of democracy in the Central Asian republics which are ruled by dictators who win managed election after managed election. Modi's journey to these countries is very different from his previous visits abroad. These nations are not located in India's immediate neighbourhood like Bhutan and Nepal nor are they Indian Ocean States like the Maldives. They are not rich or powerful as America, Japan, China, South Korea and Australia which Modi visited in the last year. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, in fact, are atop the list of least developing countries.
Badakhshan, a province on the Afghan-Tajikistan border, is witnessing the spread of conservative Salafi Islam, about which Russia, China and India are concerned. The three nations confront tensions over NATO troops's imminent withdrawal from Afghanistan and how Badakhshani elements will react in that aftermath is not easy to gauge. Plus, the idea of Islamic State is spreading in parts of Central Asia. Since Pushtu-speaking Tajikistan stretches into Afghanistan, India has cause to be concerned. This is essentially a strategic visit to countries on the ancient Silk Route which China is ambitiously reviving as the Silk Road Economic Belt under its much-talked about 'One Belt, One Road' policy initiative. India has a huge market to offer, and seeks gas, minerals and oil. Of course, there is no Indian Diaspora here, so no Madison Square Garden moment has been scheduled during the visit.
On July 6 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, his first stop, it is unlikely Modi will mention Babar, founder of the Mughal dynasty, in a positive light. Babar was born in 1483 in Andijan in Fergana, Uzbekistan. Among the five 'Stans,' Uzbekistan is clearly the leader. It has self-confidence and its economy has done well. Uzbekistan shares borders with Afghanistan along with four Central Asian countries. The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an ally of the Taliban, has extended its support to Islamic State and Sharia-based rule. Modi's first meeting on his nine-day tour will be with Uzbek President Islam Karimov who has ruled the republic since its birth in 1991. Yoga buff Modi may like to know that Gulnara Karimova, the president's elder daughter, is a designer and pop singer who has posted photographs on Twitter, of her doing Hot Yoga. No Indian airline flies to the Central Asian republics nor are visas easy to obtain. Connectivity is an issue despite the possibility of immense trade. Pakistan steadfastly refuses to allow India access to Central Asia for obvious strategic reasons. Precisely for that reason, the Tajikstan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline proposal remains important for all stakeholders, and even more so for India. If TAPI comes into being, the region could change beyond recognition. The proposed 1,735-km long TAPI gas pipeline is conceived to run from the Galkinish gas field in Turkmenistan -- which has the fourth largest natural gas reserves in the world -- through Afghanistan's Herat and Kandahar provinces via Pakistan to Fazilka on the India-Pakistan border. Conceived a decade ago and revived in 2010, the project may cost about $10 billion. Construction of the Turkmenistan-China segment of the pipeline through Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan has progressed faster and will be completed by 2018. Indian diplomats tell Rediff.com that TAPI faces investment issues with the Chevron corporation retreating from involvement due to rights issues.
In March, The Diplomat reported that 'the selection of a consortium leader has proven to be TAPI's main stumbling block. US oil majors Chevron and ExxonMobil initially expressed interest in the role. However, as Turkmenistan law precludes private ownership of land, both companies withdrew from consideration after Asghabat refused to issue an equity stake in the Galkynysh field in exchange for assuming the risk of construction. Total SA, after Chevron and ExxonMobil's withdrawal, was considered the leading candidate.' This is the latest development as Modi gets set to meet Turkmenistan's autocratic President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov in Ashgabat. Modi's Kazakhstan visit will be most important because that nation has transformed its economy and receives maximum Chinese attention. The last time an Indian prime minister visited Astana was in April 2011 when Dr Manmohan Singh visited Kazakhstan after attending the BRICS summit in Sanya, China.
SOURCE: The Rediff News
The government has rejected the plea of troubled Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL) seeking relaxation in payment of customs duty for the violation of Foreign Trade Development and Regulation Act, an official said. "The policy relaxation committee (PRC) of the Commerce Ministry has rejected the plea of HPL seeking relief from payment of customs duty by the company," Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Praveer Kumar told PTI. He said that the rejection was made on the basis of a case registered by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) for failing to meet export obligations under the advance licensing scheme. HPL had obtained advance license for importing naphtha at zero duty, for which the company was supposed to meet export obligation norms. But HPL had failed to meet them, he said. Kumar said that the ministry had advised the company informally to look at the best possible ways to go about it and asked both the West Bengal government and the promoters to deliberate on the matter. He further said, the company had also been asked to approach the revenue department of the Finance Ministry to get the relief. The management control of the company is now in the hands of Purnendu Chatterjee of the The Chatterjee Group (TCG).
SOURCE: The Business Standard
Financial services company India Nivesh has warned that when the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) comes into effect, India would be negatively impacted to a major extent; though India would not be the only country at disadvantage. China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and other non-members of TPP would also be adversely affected. The US is in advanced stages of closing the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement – one of the largest free trade agreements signed involving 12 countries. In a report,India Nivesh said the entire supply chain would undergo a major change as Vietnam would enjoy duty free access to one of the largest textile and apparel market i.e. the US. This would render other non-member countries at disadvantage reducing their competitiveness in the global market. The report said Indian companies can try to work around the TPP by establishing capacities in Vietnam and take benefit from TPP instead. China has already begun investing in Vietnam to benefit from TPP. This is a huge opportunity for Indian companies as they have various incentives from Indian and Vietnamese governments. To take advantage of yarn forward rule, spinning and weaving capacity would be more beneficial, as garment capacities are in abundance in Vietnam. With the nearing expiry of Technological Fund Scheme by March 2017, setting up capacities in Vietnam offers an alternative for cost effective expansion. India would be positive on companies establishing their manufacturing capacities in Vietnam especially in spinning and weaving, as they exhibit their foresightedness to take advantage of benefits of TPP. Currently, companies are evaluating the investment scenario in Vietnam. As per media reports, Aditya Birla group is considering an investment in Vietnam in the weaving and dying segment of the industry. Also, Welspun group is considering an investment in Vietnam, the report said.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
India’s per capita income rose 9.7 per cent to $1,631 in 2014 from $1,487 in the previous year, but it remained a low-middle income economy, according to the World Bank’s latest estimates on per capita income and GDP. The growth rate in per capita income in 2014 was higher than the 0.4 per cent rise in 2013 over $1,481 in 2012. Also, it was for the first time in three years that the per capita income increased beyond the level of 2011, when it was $1,503. India’s per capita income has been rising in rupee terms, but the depreciation of the country’s currency against the dollar made it look smaller than that in 2012 and 2013. Despite the depreciation, the country’s per capita income rose significantly in 2014 compared with 2013. India was too away from crossing the low-middle income trap as the per capita income has to cross $4,125 a year to achieve that slot. The lower range of this category is $1,046 a year, which the country crossed in 2009. India was 169th in terms of per capita income in the world. In terms of purchasing power parity (PPP), the country's per capita income grew 7.65 per cent to $5,833 in 2014, against $5,418 in the previous year. In 2013, the growth rate was 7.15 per cent over $5,056 in the previous year. India ranked 147th in terms of per capita income in PPP terms. The country's GDP crossed $2 trillion in 2014, compared to $1.86 trillion in the previous year. India crossed the $2-trillion mark in seven years after crossing $1 trillion in 60 years. In terms of official dollar-rupee rate, the economy was ninth in terms of GDP size. However, in terms of PPP, India's GDP stood at $6.78 trillion in 2014, maintaining its third slot in the world, after China and the US. It took the economy three years to cross the $4-trillion mark after it surpassed $3 trillion in 2007 and two more years to cross the $5-trillion mark.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
Punjab-based textile millers have decided to close down their industrial units, blaming direct and indirect taxes coupled with the energy crisis as the core reason for them to take the extreme step. The millers had announced a voluntary closure of their mills a few days ago, but now they have called for a ‘forced closure’ after Eid. “We had persuaded our members to not go on strike but the current scenario has tied their hands and they have no choice but to opt for the closure,” said All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) Chairman SM Tanveer. He said the situation was getting tougher every passing day, adding the basic textile sector was on the verge of collapse. Tanveer warned that the value-added sector would soon follow suit as it would be starved of yarn and fabric when present stocks were exhausted. “We do not want to confront the government but the unfair measures it has adopted to squeeze money from the millers are deeply resented by the stakeholders.” The APTMA chief said the benefit of lower oil prices was passed on to power consumers by Nepra but the government had increased the tariff by an equivalent amount through new taxes. He said power tariff stood at Rs14 per unit after duties on electricity were increased by Rs4 per unit. The textile industry consumes about 2,000MW of electricity, most of which is consumed in Punjab. Tanveer said the additional tax translated into an extra burden of Rs200 million per day on the textile industry. The power tariff in all regional economies is lower than 10 cents while Pakistani spinners, after the levy of tax, are charged 14 cents per unit. He said the gas infrastructure development cess mostly impacted the industries operating in Sindh and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa but Punjab borne a cost Rs36 billion per annum despite the volume of gas supplied. “Against Pakistan’s textile exports of $13 billion, the industry will be paying an additional $1 billion in new power and energy taxes imposed in the budget,” he said. “Which industry could bear an additional 9% expenditure when it cannot recover the money from exports?” “Our global buyers are shifting to cheaper suppliers from competing economies as they refuse to share the burden of new taxes in Pakistan.”
SOURCE: The Tribune
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Pakistani textile ministry held a meeting on July 2 in Islamabad to work out parameters for the project of “Skill Development and Market Diversification” (PSDMD) for the garment industry, the Pakistani media has reported. JICA senior advisor Takafumi Ueda and textile ministry’s secretary Amir Marwat led the two delegations. It was mutually agreed in the meeting that JICA experts would facilitate the garment sector, specially the small and medium enterprises (SMEs), in the field of international marketing practices along with compliance requirement, marketing and product diversification. The second component of the project would focus on capacity building of the two Export Development Fund (EDF) institutes, Pakistan Readymade Garment Technical Training Institute (PRGTTI) and Pakistan Knitwear Training Institute (PKTI), managed by the Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) and the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturing Association (PHMA) respectively. The JICA experts would impart training and provide necessary machinery for the institutes. The third component relates to training institute at Faisalabad Garment City. Takafumi Ueda said, “JICA previously coordinated with the textile sector of Pakistan in 1993 by helping upgrade the National Textile University Faisalabad. The new project would open a new era of cooperation between JICA and ministry of textile industry, as JICA would provide technical assistance in different fields of textiles sector.”
Amir Sarwat highlighted that Pakistan has inherent advantage of being 4th largest producer of cotton in the world with a huge potential to further increase crop yield. For success of any export led Industry, local availability of basic raw material is considered as an added advantage. He praised JICA for providing technical support to the textile industry. He said that this project would facilitate in achieving goals and objectives set forth in the Textiles Policy 2014-19. “The project would be beneficial in imparting higher skills in the area of garments along with market and product diversification of textile sector which are crucial for enhancing country exports for earning precious foreign exchange,” he added.
SOURCE: Fibre2fashion
The local clothing retailers’ lack of support of the South African clothing industry by stocking mainly imported goods has led to factory closures and thousands of job losses. This is the view of Etienne Vlok, the director of South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union’s South African Labour Research Institute (Salri). He was responding to a release from the union following the latest employment statistics from Stats SA, which showed that employment levels in the clothing, textile, footwear and leather (CTFL) sectors had increased slightly. The data was based on the latest Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) for the March 2015 quarter, which was published this week. It showed there had been a year-to-year increase of 1.5 percent in the number of employees across the CTFL industry from March last year to March this year. There has also been a 1.5 percent increase in the number of employees from December last year to March this year (quarter-to-quarter). The total number of employees in the sector increased from 87 386 to 88 657, year-to-year and a quarter-to-quarter increase of 87 319 to 88 657, both showing an increase of 1.5 percent.
Vlok said the clothing sector’s overall national numbers dropped from 210 000 to about 100 000 between 2002 and 2010. He said because Stats SA does not record provincial but only national figures, he estimated that numbers in the clothing sector of the Western Cape dropped by a similar total over that period, from about 80 000 to about 30 000 currently. “It was caused by a flood of very cheap imports, both legal and illegal, mainly from China. Three-quarters of clothing imports came from China.” He said during that period China grew as a major clothing supplying country which led to a flood of imports when the rand was stronger but now with the rand’s value having weakened, it makes it very expensive to import. “It means products manufactured locally are able to compete better with imported products. In 2 000 the situation was the reverse, it was cheaper to import which contributed to he jobs bloodbath in the clothing sector. It is against this backdrop that we look at the numbers from the Stats SA survey which show a small increase.” Vlok added that the industry has been stabilising recently and the numbers in the survey show further confirmation that the industry is stabilising. “Importantly now, we want to see the industry growing which is a major challenge,” Vlok said.
SOURCE: The IOL
OrganoClick a Swedish clean tech company produces functional fiber-based material using environmentally friendly chemistry presented a tailor made garment of the water repellent and fluorocarbon-free fabric OrganoTex at the seminar called The world’s most sustainable catwalk that took place in Almedalen this week. The presented OrganoTex-treated garment was designed by Karolina Nilsson. The tailor-made garment shown in Almedalen is made from recycled polyester by OrganoClick´s Taiwanese partner Chang-Ho Fibers. The raw-material for the fabric originates from 7 Up bottles collected by the Buddhist charity organization Tzu Chi Foundation in Taiwan. Water repellent treatments (so called DWR’s) for textiles and garments almost always contain fluorocarbons, a group of chemicals that are bio-accumulative and can cause cancer and are hormone disturbing, the company reports.
OrganoClick has developed an alternative DWR-technology free from fluorocarbons, which is said to contain only non-harmful substances, which are biodegradable. By using biodegradable and non-toxic chemistry in their products they can be sure that they don´t cause any environmental problems which the long-chain fluorocarbons do, commented Robin Grankvist, Business Area Manager for Performance Textiles & Nonwoven at OrganoClick. The new fluorocarbon-free technology has been developed by OrganoClick´s scientists and in January 2014 it was implemented in factories at Chang-Ho Fibers, a Taiwanese textile producer. Since then about 100 textiles has been developed, which are water repellent and free from fluorocarbons, according to the manufacturer. Filippa K was the first fashion brand to start use OrganoClick’s technology in its collection in February 2015. Tailor-made garment made from recycled polyester is undyed and thereby the original green colour of the bottle has been preserved, which is said to save great amount of chemicals, water and energy during the manufacturing process. The garment has been developed in collaboration between OrganoClick, Chang-Ho Fibers, the Textile University of Borås and TEKO. Mårten Hellberg, CEO of OrganoClick said that they are very proud to present such a well-designed sustainable garment that combines sustainable chemistry, recycled raw-material and savings in energy. OrganoClick scales up its production of its water repellent, fluorocarbon-free durable water repellent, and other sustainable chemistries for the global market for wood, textile and fiber industries. They will open a new factory in Arninge, north Täby. Investing in this new facility will result in a fourfold increase in production capacity for the company's sustainable chemistry formulations, resulting in total production of around 20,000 tonnes annually.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
