The Commerce and Industry Ministry is set to hold a inter-departmental meeting on Tuesday to formulate textile export strategy amid the ongoing free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations with the European Union and the United States, The Indian Express has learned.
The meeting will be attended by officials from Commerce ministry, Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) among others and is expected to discuss policy levers that could help Indian textile exporters gain a stronger foothold in key Western markets.
The textile sector—one of India’s largest employment generators and a major foreign exchange earner—has emerged as a priority area in the country’s FTA push, particularly due to its labour-intensive nature and its potential to benefit from tariff concessions in the US and EU markets.
While India’s apparel exports have long faced stiff competition from lower-cost producers like Bangladesh and Vietnam, trade deals with the EU and US could offer Indian exporters a competitive edge through preferential access.
The meeting is expected to focus on ironing out issues such as export financing, compliance with quality and sustainability standards, and the role of production-linked incentives (PLI), as India looks to position its textile industry as a major beneficiary of its expanding trade partnerships.
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