Export-import norms being liberlised — Rana

New Delhi, October 5: Textiles minister Kanshiram Rana has said policies and procedures for import and export of textiles were being simpl...

New Delhi, October 5: Textiles minister Kanshiram Rana has said policies and procedures for import and export of textiles were being simplified to make them more liberal, transparent and responsive to the needs of the industry.

“With the dismantling of quotas from the year 2005, new opportunities would be available to the industry to enhance their exports worldwide… Our efforts to improve the conditions of trade in favour of export of domestic industrial products are on,” Rana said at the award function of the Wool and Woollens Export Promotion Council here yesterday.

Rana said at a time when the global woollen industry was being hit by recession, India had registered an increase in woollen exports of two per cent during 1999-2000.

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While the woollen industry has the advantage of responding qucikly to demand, the industry needs to modernise in order to remain competitive in the post multi-fibre agreement scenario.

Emphasising the need to upgrade technology, Rana urged wool research associations to give greater emphasis to wool processing and machinery development.

“The response of the woollen industry to the technology upgradation fund has so far not been enthusiastic,” he said and urged them to take advantage of the scheme.

Textiles Secretary Anil Kumar said the textiles ministry was holding discussions with the Commerce Ministry to allow import of second-hand textile looms as part of government’s effort to increase the number of looms from the present level of 10,000 to over 50,000 within the next five years.

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Kumar said the level of exports of textiles was likely to treble from the present level of $ 12 billion to $ 35 billion within the next five years.

The industry had also set a target to achieve exports worth $ 50 billion within this decade, he said and pointed out that the government would support an export led growth policy for the textile sector.

Chariman of the Wool and Woollens Export Promotion Council Ashok Jaidka said that woollen exports had registered a growth of seven per cent in dollar terms during 1999-2000 over the previous year. During the first five months of the current fiscal, the Council had achieved exports worth $ 109 million as against targets of $ 315 million fixed by the government.

Among the companies which received awards for exemplary performance in exports during 1998-2000 included Reliance Industries Ltd, Birla VXL Ltd, Raymond Ltd and Indian Rayon and Industries Ltd.