Coimbatore, Tirupur account for 55% of India’s knitwear exports: Textile commissioner

Coimbatore: Coimbatore and Tirupur together account for nearly 55% of India's knitwear exports, textile commissioner Vrunda Manohar Desai said at a meeting with textile associations and industry stakeholders in the city on Thursday.The meeting was attended by Tamil Nadu textiles commissioner R Lalitha and representatives from textile associations across Coimbatore and Tirupur, who raised concerns related to imports, pending subsidy claims, sustainability, recycling and export support.Addressing the gathering, Vrunda said knitwear exports from the Coimbatore-Tirupur cluster stood at around Rs 45,000 crore in 2024-25, accounting for nearly 55% of India's total knitwear exports. She added that garment exports from the two clusters had also touched about Rs 45,000 crore and that the sector provided employment to around six lakh workers.Vrunda said Tirupur had emerged as a model textile cluster because of its zero liquid discharge systems and strong environmental compliance. She said the Centre was encouraging other regions to study and replicate the Tirupur ecosystem.On industry concerns over imports, she said recommendations had been made to check alleged malpractices involving yarn and fabric entering India from other countries.Referring to the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS), Vrunda said under Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme(A-TUFF) 855 grievances were under review and efforts were being made to resolve long-pending cases. She said a standing committee would be constituted in line with the 2019 protocol and asked associations to help members submit the required documents.She also spoke about the newly announced Textile Employment and Entrepreneurship Mission (TEEM), saying the scheme was expected to focus on garmenting, weaving and processing, with detailed guidelines to follow.On sustainability, Vrunda said the government was working on the Tex Eco initiative to promote environmental compliance, certification and textile waste utilisation. She said studies indicated that about 95% of pre-consumer textile waste was recycled, while post-consumer textile waste recycling stood at 45% to 50%. Work was also under way on HSN codes and branding support for recycled textile units.She said a simplified TSRS portal and mobile version were being developed and future scheme benefits would be linked to TSRS return filing.Earlier, Tamil Nadu textile commissioner Lalitha urged the Centre to consider waiving import duty on cotton and to reopen a Cotton Corporation of India warehouse in Coimbatore, a long-pending demand of the industry. Vrunda said she would take up the matter with CCI.