AP Chambers pitches for Integrated Mega Textile Park

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation (AP Chambers) in a letter to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman requested her for allotment of an Integrated Mega Textile Park for Andhra Pradesh.

K V S Prakash Rao, president of AP Chambers, applauding the Centre's efforts to position India as globally competitive manufacturing and exporting hub, said that

Andhra ranked seventh in terms of cotton production in the country with a production of 21.26 lakh bales in 2017-18.

Thus, there is good availability of cotton for value addition in AP. There are about 150 spinning mills in the state, with a capacity of approximately 40 lakh spindles producing 20 lakh kg cotton yarn per day.

Further, there are around 18,000 power looms of which about 9,000 are shuttle looms and 1,300 high-speed air jet looms. Andhra Pradesh has well-developed ginning and spinning segments in the textile industry and is one of the leading producers of cotton in the country.

West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam and Chittoor districts have many textile-based industries such as modern textile weaving, cloth weaving, hosiery and spinning mills. Innovations in the textile industry enhanced the state's repertoire of fashion designs.

The state is home to the fashion and traditions of the finest cloth making and dyeing techniques. Many districts in Andhra Pradesh have their own unique weaving patterns, styles and methods, the letter said.

Some of the world-known handloom centres in AP for famous textiles goods are Uppada, Peddapuram, Mangalagiri, Chirala, Pedana, Venkatagiri, Pondur, Dharmavaram. Andhra Pradesh has one of the best-planned hubs of this industry in Visakhapatnam, which has fetched investments from Arvind Ltd., Gokaldas Exports and a few other companies and 12 new apparel units have plans to invest huge investments in the region.

However, Prakash Rao pointed out that there is very less presence in the crucial weaving, processing and garments segments leading to heavy export of yarn that results in value migration from our state to other destinations. This also mandates the import of fabric for the apparel and garment units that are located in the state, leading to an increase in the cost of raw material due to logistics and loss of productivity.

He observed that the textile sector plays a key role in the economy of Andhra Pradesh by way of significant contribution to economic growth. Availability of abundant raw material, skilled manpower and lower cost of production are some of the key factors that contribute to the success of AP textile industry. The textile sector is one of the largest providers of employment in AP.

AP is ranked as one of the top five textile and clothing manufacturing Indian states by the department of industrial policy and promotion which has released the top textile and clothing manufacturing Indian states based on ease of doing business. Andhra Pradesh is ranked twice at the top of the list in the last three years.

However, the state has not achieved much progress in terms of the value-added textile activities such as weaving units, knitting units, preparatory units, processing units, technical textiles, integrated units, which have a greater potential not only in terms of promoting value addition but also in creating large scale employment. In order to convert the entire yarn into fabric in the State.

The chamber president said the state needs an integrated mega textile park in order to convert the major portion of the yarn produced in the state into fabric and garments within the state, to promote the state as a destination for global textile majors.