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The Indian textile sector is the sixth-largest exporter of textiles and apparel in the world. According to sources, the Union Cabinet approved the long-awaited project to establish mega-investment textile parks (MITRA) across India on Wednesday. In the next three years, the textile ministry will construct seven buildings on more than 100 acres. This initiative will aid in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) into the textile industry, resulting in the creation of thousands of jobs.

Union finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, declared during the Budget that this will establish world-class infrastructure with plug-and-play facilities to enable the creation of global export champions. Announced in Budget FY22, the MITRA parks will also have uninterrupted water and power supply, common utilities and research and development labs.

They are intended to have and quick turnaround time to minimise transportation losses aimed to attract big-ticket investments in the sector. It will also help India establish itself as a fully integrated, globally competitive textile manufacturing and exporting centre, according to the Union government.

As per Smriti Z Irani, the Union Minister for Women and Child Development, MITRA will be a major development for the Indian textiles sector. MITRA, in collaboration with the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, would lead to higher investments and employment possibilities. The government is likely to invite expression of interest from states within the next month to start the process. Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra have shown interest in setting up textile parks, according to sources.

Union commerce and textiles minister Piyush Goyal earlier said that the sector would achieve USD 44 billion exports target in 2021-22. The industry aims for USD 100 billion outbound shipments in the next five years, Goyal added.

These mega-investment textile parks would play a crucial to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), experts believed. Union Cabinet earlier approved a Rs 10,683 crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for man-made fibre segment (MMF) apparel, MMF fabrics and ten products of technical textiles for five years. This scheme was expected to boost domestic manufacturing and exports.

The scheme aimed to attract fresh investment of Rs 19,000 crore in the sector for the production of in-demand textiles and additional turnover of Rs 3 lakh crore over five years. This was part of a larger PLI scheme for 13 sectors, with a total budgetary outlay of 1.97 lakh crore.

The scheme would directly benefit the states of Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Odisha, as these were states where the textile sector is already growing, Union commerce and textiles minister Piyush Goyal said while unveiling the scheme last month.