Rebuilding India’s Textile And Apparel Export Competitiveness

Context: The article argues that India must combine production scale, fibre diversification, affordable finance, labour reform, integrated clusters and efficient trade institutions to regain textile-export competitiveness.

Source: “India once dominated the textile trade. It needs institutions to make a mark again,” The Indian Express, July 20, 2026.

Core Points

• India possesses an extensive textile value chain covering natural fibres, spinning, weaving, processing, garment production and exports.
• Its global apparel-export share has nevertheless remained around 3%, while Bangladesh and Vietnam have expanded their respective shares.
• A “missing middle” of medium-sized, export-ready firms restricts India’s ability to accept large orders, maintain consistent quality and meet short delivery periods.
• India’s fibre consumption remains weighted towards cotton even though global apparel demand is dominated by man-made fibres, including segments such as activewear and athleisure.
• High financing costs, delayed tax refunds and slow export-incentive disbursal can constrain working capital and investment.
• Dependence on migrant workers contributes to seasonal attrition and production uncertainty. Locating factories closer to labour-surplus regions could reduce migration costs and expand women’s workforce participation.
• International experience indicates that tariff preferences alone are insufficient. Export credit, industrial clusters, plug-and-play infrastructure, skills, investment and simplified trade procedures must operate together.
• PM MITRA parks seek to integrate the textile value chain at large sites, reduce logistics costs and support economies of scale.
• India aims to raise textile and apparel exports from about $37–40 billion to $100 billion by 2030. Ministry of Textiles

Prelims Relevance

• PM MITRA stands for Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel.
• The scheme follows the “5F” vision: Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to Foreign.
• Man-made fibres include synthetic fibres and regenerated cellulosic fibres; they are not all chemically identical.
• An export-processing zone provides designated infrastructure and customs or regulatory facilities for export-oriented production.
• An inverted duty structure arises when duties on inputs exceed duties on the finished product, potentially accumulating input-tax credits.

Mains Relevance

• GS III — Manufacturing, exports, employment, industrial clusters, global value chains and infrastructure.
• GS II — Labour skilling, institutional coordination and women’s economic participation.

Supporting Fact Box

• Seven PM MITRA parks have been approved in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
• The scheme permits both greenfield and brownfield sites and has an outlay of ₹4,445 crore for 2021–22 to 2027–28. PIB
• Greenfield parks are developed on new sites; brownfield parks build upon existing industrial infrastructure.
• PM MITRA is intended to locate spinning, processing, dyeing, printing and garment manufacturing within an integrated ecosystem, reducing fragmented logistics.
• Export credit insurance protects exporters or lenders against specified non-payment risks; it does not eliminate ordinary commercial risk.