Industry & Economy
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Textiles
Excise reliefs sought for textile sector
Our Bureau
MUMBAI, Sept. 30
THE Government should either halve or forego the excise duty earned from the textile sector, according to Mr T. Kannan, the outgoing Chairman of the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (Texprocil).
Though it had lost out to the knowledge sector following the IT boom in recent years, the textile sector remained a major source of employment for youth, not all of whom were equipped or qualified for the knowledge sector, he said.
Though the textile sector had enhanced its technical capabilities with greater investments in technology and the implementation of TUFS, Indian quotations were not the most competitive in the global arena, Mr Kannan said at an awards presentation function organised by the council.
This was due to the cost-push on account of higher input costs. For example, while power cost was 8.87 US cents per kWh in India, it was 3.5 cents in Bangladesh, 3.65 cents in Indonesia, 6 cents in China and 6.57 cents in Pakistan, he said.
Besides, ``inflexible labour laws and operations in an unequal international setting'' where anti-dumping action was being initiated on many of our products had undermined the competitiveness of Indian textiles.
Urging greater diplomatic effort in the resolution of anti-dumping action against Indian exports, he said such action was being initiated on bed linen once again.
The Union Minister of Textiles, Mr Kashiram Rana, who gave away the awards, said the Government was keen to reform labour laws and talks on the same were on.
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