Chennai, May 14 (IANS). Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to immediately remove the 11 percent import duty on cotton. He warned that the textile and apparel sector of the state was facing a serious crisis due to rising prices of raw materials.
In a letter to Prime Minister Modi, CM Vijay said that the huge increase in the prices of cotton and yarn has put tremendous pressure on clothing manufacturers and has endangered the livelihood of lakhs of workers dependent on this sector.
Describing Tamil Nadu as India’s largest textile and apparel exporting state, the Chief Minister further said that this industry provides direct and indirect employment to lakhs of people.
Chief Minister Vijay said that the textile and apparel industry of Tamil Nadu is going through a serious crisis due to the unprecedented increase in the prices of cotton and yarn.
Chief Minister Vijay said the increase was mainly due to decline in domestic cotton production and increased trade activities across the country, which has disrupted the supply chain and impacted textile manufacturers.
He further said that continuous supply of raw material can now be ensured only through imports, but due to the existing 11 per cent import duty on cotton, imports are proving costly and uneconomic for the industry.
According to the Chief Minister, the price of cotton has increased from Rs 54,700 to Rs 67,700 per candy in the last two months, registering a huge increase of about 25 percent. During the same period, yarn prices have also increased from Rs 301 per kg to Rs 330 per kg.
Chief Minister Vijay said the increase was mainly due to decline in domestic cotton production and increased trade activities across the country, which has disrupted the supply chain and impacted textile manufacturers.
–IANS
PSK/ABM