Indian textile sector needs to take a moon shot – Dr Ramkumar

07 Dec '09

10 min read

“Indian textile industry is one of the two largest bread baskets in India and a major export income earner. For example, total textile exports in 2007-08 were around US $22 billion. However, it is expected to drop by over a billion dollar in the 2008-09 period. More importantly, exports to USA are expected to dip by around 8% in 2008-09.

“In addition, the Indian textile industry is currently facing problems on three fronts, namely, raw materials; skilled labour force and technology and more importantly, the issues surrounding the availability of cotton, which is the backbone of the Indian textile industry, have put enormous stress on the Indian textile industry.

“This ATNT 09 conference will address these aforementioned issues by providing an international platform where, industrial and academic experts from many leading institutions around the globe are convening in Sathyamngalam, India for three days to discuss the advancements in textile processes and products.

“The conference will feature timely topics such as advancements in natural and synthetic fibres, machinery and instrumentation, developments in spinning and other processes. Special emphasis has been given to nonwovens, technical textiles and cotton sectors as these are very critical on the growth of the Indian textile industry.

“The special session on cotton will bring leading associations representing cotton on one platform. In fact, ATNT 09 is the first international platform where associations in India such as The Southern Indian Mills Association (SIMA), the Southern Indian Cotton Association (SICA), Central Institute for Research Cotton Technology, Mumbai (CIRCOT) and the USA based Plains Cotton Growers of Texas will have a seat on the table to talk about cotton and its impact on the global textile trade.

“It is estimated that the United States will produce 12.1 million bales of cotton (480 pounds each), out of which, Texas is estimated to produce 4.9 million bales of cotton, this cotton season and based on the latest report, length and micronorie of the current Texas cotton crop is good.

“Apart from building-up the cotton textile industry in India, it is time to beef-up the nonwovens and technical textiles sector. Nonwovens and technical textiles industry is directly related to the growth of economy of nations, rise in income levels and the improvement in life-style of the masses. These are the three factors which have aided the growth of the global nonwovens and technical textiles sectors.

“As the GDP grows, technical textiles industry will grow. According to a recent prediction by Mr. Robert Zoellick, President of the World Bank, India's growth will be in 8 to 9 percent range during the next two years. More importantly, his emphasis on enhancing the infrastructure in India which involves projects related to roads, bridges, seaports, etc. will boost the growth of technical textiles sector. As a thumb rule, 20 percent of the total project will be dedicated to technical textiles.

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