By M.K. Prabhakar
The buzz seems to be well and truly back in Tiruppur. After a relatively long lull, things are looking up for the ‘Dollar City’. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), which has been instrumental in the successful promotion of manufacturing sector initiatives across the country, is playing a key role in the development of the city in general and the textile sector in particular.
In a casual chat with The Textile Magazine, Dr. Veluswamy, Chairman, CII Tiruppur District, and Managing Director of Myco Pranav Creations, gave detailed insights into the various initiatives that CII has taken for Tiruppur’s development, the challenges that need to be surmounted in general and the current city textile industry scenario.
“The textile industry at present is in good shape here. Almost everyone is doing well”, said Dr. Veluswamy, who has taken over as the CII Tiruppur District Chairman for 2015-16. “One of the key issues the industry is grappling with is labour shortage.” Dr. Veluswamy has been involved in garment business for the past 41 years. He has done his Bachelor’s Degree in Statistics from PSGCAS, and later received an Honorary Doctorate of Fashion Designing and Textiles Technology from the University Populare Degli Studi Di-Milano-Italy. Very active in industrial as well as social circles, he was a founder-member of the Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) which he served as Treasurer of TEA for 12 years. He was the past District Governor of LIONS District 324 -B5 and also has been recently appointed as the Lions 324 Multiple Quest Chairman for 2014-16.
Dr. Veluswamy was the Vice Chairman of CII Tiruppur District for 2014-15 before recently taking over as its Chairman.
Listing the future initiatives of CII Tiruppur District, Dr. Veluswamy observed: “We have planned a series of activities, including a conference on Family Business and on New Technologies and Advancements in Textiles, a session on Finance for SMEs and on Training on Total Cost Management, and an interactive session with several leading luminaries from different industries, including senior ministers and bureaucrats.”
Road map for district development
The CII Tiruppur District has chalked out a clear roadmap for the development of the district, as part of the ‘Tiruppur First 2020’ vision document which has been prepared in collaboration with the globally reputed consultancy firm Grant Thornton. The vision document focuses on the initiatives that will facilitate achievement of the Tiruppur Knitwear Cluster turnover of Rs. 1,00,000 crores by 2020.
According to him, one of the areas that need urgent attention is housing facilities for labour, lack of which is one of the reasons for labour migration and the heavy attrition rate. Adequate availability of housing and other basic amenities for the migrant workforce at affordable prices should get top priority. “The Tiruppur textile cluster is currently having around 2,000 apparel manufacturing units and approximately 5,000 garment accessory units involved in knitting, dyeing, compacting, printing, embroidery, etc.
“It is important to create infrastructure for affordable housing and accommodation of migrant workers so as to ensure long-term sustenance of the growth potential”, he pointed out, and added that ‘Better Housing Facility for the Working Class in Tiruppur’, apart from the creation of a Garment Business Centre and Pollution and Global Competition, are the key highlights of the proposals submitted by the CII Tiruppur District at a recent CII meeting to promote investments in Tamil Nadu ahead of the forthcoming Global Investors Meet (GIM) in the State.
He said proper training of the workforce is another key area of focus, as also establishment of a textile sector-specific training institute. Setting up of an exclusive modern ‘Apparel Design Studio’ is another priority area. Right now the design services are being carried out mostly at the buyers end, at locations in the US and the European Union. The establishment of a exclusive design studio in Tiruppur will enable exporters here have a further competitive edge.
Also on the anvil are an exclusive ‘Centre for Excellence’ and a ‘Research Institute’. The Centre is intended to facilitate investments in the niche textile segments such as technical textiles, medical textiles, sports textiles, etc. The vision document also proposes further development of the NIFT-TEA Knitwear Fashions into a state-of-the-art research institute on the lines of the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI).
Dr. Veluswamy also pointed out that the research institute will not only provide the latest information, but will also have facilities to provide solutions for the day-to-day operational problems faced by the textile industry.
Pollution control
The entire Tiruppur textile cluster has been grappling with the issue of pollution control for quite a while. The landmark initiative of adapting the ‘Zero Liquid Discharge’ technology has proved a shot in the arm for the industry. The technology, however, involves using the expensive evaporator mechanism which, in turn, causes a dent in the competitiveness of exports from the city.
Going into details of the CII Tiruppur District strategy to deal with the issue, Dr. Veluswamy said: “There is need for further research on other cost-effective mechanisms and to bring all the effluent treatment plants under one umbrella by adopting a uniform technology. However, for this the Government has to come forward and help with investments to meet the costs involved. At the same time, the manufacturers would be willing to share a part of the investment. We will further intensify our efforts on this front and hopefully will come out with a positive solution in the near future.”
Citing the example of Andhra Pradesh where the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, has initiated steps to woo entrepreneurs in order to boost the manufacturing sector in the State, with ‘plug n play’ manufacturing facilities where the effluent treatment infrastructure would be the responsibility of the State Government, he wanted the Tamil Nadu Government to initiate similar steps in order to help Tiruppur hold on to its competitive edge.
The initiatives under consideration of the CII Tiruppur District would hopefully go a long way in the overall development of Tiruppur and its textile sector. “We are constantly in touch with various Government ministries and authorities and are very confident that Tiruppur will touch further dizzy heights as a preferred manufacturing destination in the near future,” Dr. Veluswamy signed off on an optimistic note.