SGCCI Urges Removal of QCO on Specialty Yarns, Revival of ATUF Scheme

Surat : The Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI) has petitioned Union Textile Minister Giriraj Singh to remove Quality Control Orders (QCO) on specialty yarns not produced in India and intended for import from China, as well as to reintroduce the ATUF scheme for the textile industry. 

A team led by SGCCI president Vijay Mevawala and South Gujarat Textile Processors Association Jitu Vakharia met with Union Textile Minister Giriraj Singh in New Delhi, as well as Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Paatil. 

The SGCCI president made several presentations to India’s Union Minister of Textiles, Giriraj Singh, to address issues facing the textile industry’s development. In this context, the president of the SGCCI met with the Indian government’s Joint Textile Secretary Prajakta Verma (IAS).

Vijay Mewawala informed the Minister of Textiles that certain yarns, such as Mechanical Stretch Yarn, Buy Shrinkage Yarn, High Denier Polyester Industrial Yarn, Low Denier High Filament Yarn, and Low Denier Low Filament Yarn, are specialty polyester yarns that are not manufactured in India and must be imported from China. They should be removed from the QCO. 

He also petitioned the Minister of Textiles for the reinstatement of the ATUF initiative. 

“India currently accounts for 2% of global textile exports, with the Indian government aiming to increase this to 10% by 2047. To accomplish this, significant investment in the textile sector’s downstream, processing, and knitting industries is required, as well as ATUF. However, there is an urgent need to revive the plan, which has been shut down since April 2022,” added Mewavala.

Mevawala gave a presentation to revive the Yarn Bank Scheme. He informed the Minister that as a result of QCO, yarn prices have risen dramatically, while yarn availability has dropped. Small weavers have a difficult time obtaining yarn, so he suggested that the yarn bank idea be reintroduced to help them.

Apart from that, the Stand Up India Scheme has been closed since 2020, and the Power Tax Scheme, Group Workshed Scheme, SITP Scheme, IPDS Scheme, and Comprehensive Powerloom Development Scheme are all now closed. These projects gave aid to all industrialists along the textile value chain, therefore their revival was advocated to propel India to global prominence.

In addition, the Center should develop a new textile policy. It was also planned to implement the PLI-II scheme, improve the investment conditions, and remove the provision for incremental turnover.