The Ministry of Textiles has disbanded All India Powerloom Board after All India Handicrafts and Handloom boards. Also, all of the eight Textiles Research Associations in the country will now cease to be “affiliated bodies” of the ministry.

Highlights

The Textile Research Associations will now act as approved bodies to conduct tests, researches and development activities of textiles sector. The decision has been made to stick to the principle of “Minimum Government Maximum Governance”.

The board was first constituted in November 1981. Powerloom is a mechanised loom that was developed during early Industrial Revolution. The Handloom Board was scrapped on the National Handloom Day (August 7).

Textiles Research Associations

The eight Textiles Research Associations in India are as follows

• Textiles Research Association in Ghaziabad
• Ahmedabad Textile Industry Research Association
• Bombay Textiles Research Association
• Man-made Textiles Research Association in Surat
• Synthetic and Art Silk Mills Research Association in Mumbai
• World research Association in Thane Indian
• Jute Industries Research Association in Kolkata
• South India Textiles Research Association in Coimbatore.

Textiles Sector in India

The domestic textiles contribute to 2.3% of GDP of India. Also, it contributes to 13% of export earning of the country and 7% of manufacturing production. Textiles industry provides second largest employment in the country providing employment to more than 45 million people.

The textiles sector is highly important to India as it generates huge employment to both skilled and unskilled labours after agriculture.

India is first in jute production and contributes to 63% of Global textile market. Most of the jute mills in India are located in the banks of Hooghly River. India faces tough competition from countries such as Brazil, Bangladesh, Philippines, Thailand and Egypt. The main markets of jute are Russia, USA, UK, Australia and Canada.

The textiles industry in India include silk, cotton, wool, jute and man-made fibres. Cotton contributes to 60% of Indian Textiles industry. The Cotton Textile industries are concentrated in the cotton growing belts of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.