Skip to main content

Slow down effect: Annual rate of closure of textile units in Gujarat is 39% over a decade; one lakh jobs lost

Textile industry in Gujarat, once considered the Manchester of India, are all set to see a thing of the past in the state. A new study by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India (ASSOCHAM), of the top industry bodies, has said that Gujarat, over the decade between 2000-01 and 2010-11 experienced closure of 39 per cent of textile units per year, which is the highest for any state. “Gujarat registered maximum growth of about 39 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in non-operational textile units, i.e. from over 290 factories to over 2,800 factories during 2000-01 and 2010-11", the study said.
This was "followed by Punjab (35 per cent), Haryana (32 per cent), Himachal Pradesh (26 per cent) and Tamil Nadu (25 per cent)”, it said in a statement, adding, Gujarat alone has registered a loss of jobs to one lakh workers as a result. Poor show by Gujarat is particularly alarming, as the state happens to the highest producer of raw cotton -- about one-fourth of the country -- and has even come up with a textile policy in order to attract modern textile technology. Most of the cotton produced in Gujarat is exported either out of India or goes down south, mainly Tamil Nadu.
“About 30 per cent of total textile factories across India remained non-operational during 2000-2010 with Tamil Nadu alone having over half of the total non-operating textile factories”, said the study by apex industry body ASSOCHAM. “Of the total 17,987 textile factories across India, about 12,688 factories were operational and about 5,300 were non-operational as of 2010-11,” according to the study titled ‘State-wise assessment of textile sector & recommendations,” conducted by ASSOCHAM.
“While the total number of textile factories grew at a CAGR of about five per cent during the decade of 2000-01 and 2010-11, the non-operational textile factories grew at a whopping 23 per cent and the textile factories under operation grew at a CAGR of a meagre two per cent,” said Mr D.S. Rawat, national secretary general of ASSOCHAM while releasing the findings of the study.
The five states of Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Punjab, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh (UP) together accounted for about 88 per cent of these non-operating textile factories, highlighted the ASSOCHAM study. “Tamil Nadu alone accounts for about 54 per cent of non-operating textile units followed by Gujarat (16 per cent), Maharashtra (over 10 per cent), Punjab (over four per cent) and UP (over three per cent).”
“Low productivity, lack of advanced manufacturing technologies, lack of foreign investments, supply chain bottlenecks, lack of economies of scale, labour related challenges, issues arising due to a fragmented industry and weak brand positioning are certain key reasons for non-operation of textile units,” said Rawat. “Increased domestic competition together with competiton from global players and high initial investment cost for state of the art production facilities are other emerging challenges being faced by Indian textile industry.”
The share of jobs lost due to non-operation of textile factories in India has increased from over six per cent in 2000-01 to about 42 per cent in 2010-11. “This is a matter of grave concern as the organized textile sector apart from creating significant number of jobs of over 14 lakh, it also contributes about four per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 10.1 percent to the total exports earnings,” added the ASSOCHAM secretary general.
As per the ASSOCHAM Research Bureau, Tamil Nadu has incurred maximum loss of over two lakh job opportunities followed by Gujarat which has lost over one lakh employment opportunities due to non-operation of textile factories.
Technology up-gradation, skill up-gradation, inflow of foreign investments, partnership with international labels, brand promotion, flexible labour policy are certain key suggestions listed by ASSOCHAM to make the textile industry financially viable thereby minimising the share of non-operational factories.

Comments

TRENDING

World Hijab Day? Ex-Muslim women observe Feb 1 as No Hijab Day, insist: 'Put it on a Man'

I didn't know that there could ever be a thing as World Hijab Day until I received an email alert from Maryam Namazie of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB), stating that several ex-Muslim women's groups had observed the same day—February 1—as No Hijab Day! According to Namazie, the day "was created on February 1 as a direct response to World Hijab Day" to "illuminate the coercive and oppressive realities of the hijab as a pillar of sex apartheid and a war on women."

Google powered AI refuses to correct grammar of a 'balanced' piece on Trump sending chained immigrants to India!

This is a continuation of my blog on how, while the start-up-developed AI app DeepSeek is being criticized for consistently rejecting content related to China or Maoism, there appears to be no mention in Western media about why another app, developed by the powerful Google, Gemini, remains silent on Indian political issues.  

Talking of increased corporate control over news, Rajdeep Sardesai 'evades' alternative media

When I received an intimation that well-known journalist Rajdeep Sardesai was to speak at the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) on February 2, my instant reaction was: I know what he is going to say—his views are quite well known; he wouldn’t be saying anything new. Yet, I decided to go and listen to him to catch his mood at a time when the media, as he (and I) knew it, is changing fast due to the availability of new technological tools that were not accessible even a decade ago.

Why predictions of an imminent collapse of the Russian economy may be wrong

A veteran Canadian journalist, settled in Russia, stated in a Facebook post that President Donald Trump "is apparently listening to experts who tell him that Russia's economy is on the verge of 'imploding,' and if he just squeezes a bit harder," his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin "will fall into line."

Gujarat a police state? How top High Court advocate stunned a senior-most journalist

Rajdeep Sardesai, Anand Yagnik This is a continuation of my earlier blog on well-known journalist Rajdeep Sardesai's lecture in memory of the late Achyut Yagnik at the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA). I was a little surprised when I received the intimation about the venue for the lecture.

5% poor in India? Union govt claim debunked, '26.4% of population below poverty line'

A recent paper, referring to the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) 2022-23 of the Government of India (GoI), has debunked the official claim that poverty has substantially declined. Titled "Poverty in India: The Rangarajan Method and the 2022–23 Household Consumption Expenditure Survey", the paper —authored by scholars CA Sethu, LT Abhinav Surya, and CA Ruthu—states that "more than a quarter of India’s population falls below the poverty line."

Gujarat's water anarchy? 16.7% of Narmada water going to industry, 33% of targeted area irrigated: Govt insider

The Narmada project is something that has always excited me, including how much water will be distributed and to which sector. A few days ago, when I was talking to a top Gujarat government insider, I was a little surprised when I was told that it is up to the “respective states to decide how much Narmada water they would distribute among various sectors” out of the total quota allocated to the four states—Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan—as per the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal award of 1979.

DeepSeek censors uncomfortable queries on China, but why's Gemini so touchy on India?

The powerful Chinese AI app DeepSeek, which has taken the Silicon Valley by surprise, as it has capacities matching Google’s Gemini and Open AI's ChatGPT, is being criticised for restricting free speech, and rightly so. It is being said that those signing up for the chatbot and its open-source technology "are being confronted with the Chinese Communist Party’s brand of censorship and information control."

Russians at a Bali yoga camp to avoid drafting for war? Things aren't any different in Ukraine

Are people in Russia becoming frustrated with the prolonged war in Ukraine? And is the war having a similar impact on the people of Ukraine? I have no firsthand information about this, but it is well known how nationalist hysteria often seeks to conceal such frustration, particularly among the youth.