As per the data released by the Ministry of textiles, the total amount of exports from Punjab for 2019-20 was of US$ 1,509 million.
Other states that have ranked ahead of Punjab include Delhi (US$ 2,332), Gujarat (US$ 4,901), Haryana (US$ 3,035), Karnataka (US$ 2,386), Maharashtra (US$ 3,987), Tamil Nadu (US$ 6,766) and Uttar Pradesh (US$ 2,853).
Industrialists said it was because of the Centre and the state government turning a blind eye to the problems of the garment and textile industry and if these warning signs were ignored, Punjab may slip even further.
However, some businessmen differed and said the data contained statistics for textile products like sarees, carpet, denim, home furnishing and other handlooms, which were not the specialisation of Punjab.
One of the biggest hurdles for Ludhiana’s garment exporters is huge expenditure incurred on the outgoing freight till the ports as compared with the other states.
Vinod Thapar, chairman of Knitwear Club, said, “Punjab’s garment industry is in dire need of technological advancement.
Both Centre and state should come together and introduce a tailor-made technological upgrade scheme for us, under which we should be given financing at 0% rate for purchase of machinery.
