Gujarat emerges as second-highest textile exporter in India, over the last five years
AHMEDABAD : Gujarat is making a significant resurgence in India’s textile export market. The state has been the nation’s second-largest exporter of textiles in the last five years. In 2023–2024, Tamil Nadu continued to lead, although Gujarat, with US $ 5,749 million in exports, was not far behind.
The state’s new textile policy, according to experts, may soon tip the scales. Gujarat has continuously maintained a significant position in the cotton yarn and fabric markets, but according to industry experts, the state has not yet reached its full potential in the global supply chain for textiles.
According to experts, the recently implemented textile regulation has the potential to revolutionise the industry. It seeks to establish the state into a major worldwide textile powerhouse by promoting new investments, particularly in garment manufacturing.
The policy’s emphasis on technical textiles, integrated infrastructure, and increased value-added production may help Gujarat’s standing in the years to come. In 2021–2022, there was a significant increase in exports, mostly as a result of rising cotton prices. Manufacturers, meanwhile, are looking at more predictable input costs and improved long-term planning now that cotton prices have stabilised at about Rs. 53,500 (US $ 624.21) per candy (356 kg).
Union Minister of State for Textiles Shri Pabitra Margherita emphasised the Center’s efforts to increase the sector’s competitiveness through important initiatives in a response to the Lok Sabha. These consist of the production-linked incentive (PLI) program targeted at the technical textiles and man-made fibre (MMF) segments and the PM MITRA program for world-class textile parks.
Gujarat’s growth started with the 2012 textile policy, according to Rahul Shah, co-chairman of the GCCI textile taskforce, who added that Gujarat has a significant advantage in exporting cotton fabric and yarn. Gujarat still has the potential to expand, he said, even though demand in Europe decreased as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war. He continued by saying that Gujarat may benefit from the global effort to lessen dependency on Bangladesh and China, particularly as major corporations look for other sourcing locations in the wake of Covid.