There is a distinct reversal of the falling trend in overall exports from the country if the 6.97 per cent growth in exports for the third consecutive month at $30.8 billion in March against $28.8 billion in the same month last year is anything to go by. Commerce Ministry sources confirm that if the current growth rate continues, an appreciable 10 per cent rise in exports is easily attainable for the current year. Unnerved as he is by the setback in his earlier efforts to revive the ailing textile industry, Mr. Anand Sharma, Industries and Textiles Minister, did take this opportunity to come out with a series of measures to substantially step up exports from the textile sector, the largest exchange earner for the country. Announcing the Annual Supplement 2013-14 to the Foreign Trade Policy 2009-14, he conceded the industry demand for inclusion of zero duty EPCG Scheme to TUFS beneficiaries, extended the two per cent subvention on export credit upto March 2013-14, included 126 new products, including textiles, under the Focus Product Scheme, added 47 fresh items under MLFPS and 53 more countries from Latin America and Africa under the Incremental Exports Incentivisation Scheme. Industry circles are more than sure that these timely measures will encourage textile exports, especially in the context of the deteriorating global economic scenario, and reduce India’s dependence on the traditional US and European markets for exports.
The Cotton Advisory Board (CAB) revelation that cotton production during 2012-13 would be 340 lakh bales against the earlier estimate of 330 lakh bales has come as a pleasant surprise. So too, cotton yarn production, consumption and exports are on the increase. However, the Government do well to so modify the cotton export policy to avert a situation as in 2011-12 when indiscriminate exports of cotton without proper assessment of the local needs were allowed. This, coupled with suspension of yarn exports which was lifted later, led to the closure of hundreds of mills and under-utilisation of capacity by several others. In fact, the crisis-ridden mill industry hasn’t yet fully recovered despite best efforts made.