ASSOCHAM asks for deregulation of handloom sector

Published: 30 Dec 2008 23:41:42 PST

To help the textile sector attract FDIs, upgrade technology and generate employment, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has suggested complete deregulation of India's handloom sector with flexibility in labour laws. D S Rawat, secretary general, ASSOCHAM, said, "The technology upgradation fund scheme (TUFS) for the sector was introduced in March 2006, but majority of the investments that took place in the textile sector went out of it. This means that textile units had chosen to invest by not taking recourse to the TUFS route." He added that another disturbing feature is that FDIs attracted by the domestic textile sector continue to remain low in the last 14-15 years, as the textile sector contributed less than 2.5 per cent out of the total FDIs attracted. ASSOCHAM