Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the PM MITRA Park at Warangal in Telangana yesterday.

Developed at an investment of ₹16.95 billion (~$178 million), it is the country’s first functional PM MITRA Park and operationalises the government’s 5F vision—farm to fibre to factory to fashion to foreign.

Indian PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the PM MITRA Park at Warangal in Telangana yesterday.
Developed at an investment of $178 million, it is the first functional PM MITRA Park and operationalises the government’s 5F vision—farm to fibre to factory to fashion to foreign.
Strategically located near the proposed Nagpur-Vijayawada Greenfield Expressway and close to NH-163, it offers multimodal connectivity.

Inaugurating the project, Modi said the park will accelerate the textile revolution in the country, creating large-scale employment opportunities, especially for women.

Strategically located near the proposed Nagpur-Vijayawada Greenfield Expressway (NH-163G) and in proximity to NH-163, the park offers excellent multimodal connectivity to major railway networks and seaports, ensuring seamless logistics for global trade, a release from the Ministry of Textiles said.

The park is equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure, including an extensive internal road network, dedicated power substation and assured water supply. It also emphasises sustainable development through a common effluent treatment plant with zero liquid discharge technology.

The Ministry of Textiles approved the establishment of seven PM MITRA parks in the states of Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in March 2023.

Industries being set up in the park will not only have access to world class infrastructure facilities for the textile sector, but will also receive competitive incentive support (CIS) under the PM MITRA scheme.

Manufacturing units become eligible for incentive support for which total fund of ₹300 crore for each park, thereby making these parks more attractive to investors.

Units in the PM MITRA parks are also eligible for benefits in convergence with other government schemes.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

M Masrur Reaz, chairman and chief executive officer of think tank Policy Exchange Bangladesh, recently called for urgent modernisation of the country’s port infrastructure, overhaul of trade facilitation systems and activation of its dormant National Logistics Policy to stay globally competitive.

Reaz made the observations while presenting a keynote paper titled ‘Integrated Port and Logistics Development for a Trade-Driven Bangladesh’ at a roundtable organised by the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).

Policy Exchange Bangladesh has called for urgent modernisation of the country’s port infrastructure, overhaul of trade facilitation systems, and activation of its dormant National Logistics Policy to stay globally competitive.
A 25-per cent cut in logistics costs could boost exports by 20 per cent, while cutting container dwell time by just a day at Chattogram would raise exports by 7.4 per cent, it said.

Bangladesh’s overdependence on the readymade garments (RMG) sector, which accounted for 81.49 per cent of total exports in fiscal 2024-25, combined with a deteriorating logistics ecosystem, poses serious risks to the country’s long-term economic resilience, particularly as it approaches graduation from the least developed country (LDC) status, he cautioned.

Bangladesh ranks 88th on the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index, far behind India at 38th and Vietnam at 43rd, while Chattogram Port sits at 356th on the Container Port Performance Index, compared to Haiphong at 30th.

Container dwell times at Chattogram remain critically high, with vessel turnaround averaging 3.23 days against just 0.86 days at Colombo.

Chattogram Port handles 92 per cent of the country’s seaborne trade and 98 per cent of container trade, yet operates under an outdated ‘tool port’ model, relies heavily on manual processes and has a draft depth of only 9.5 metres, insufficient for large vessels and forcing costly transshipment via third countries, he was cited as saying by domestic media outlets.

Port tariffs have not been revised since 2008.

A 25-per cent reduction in logistics costs could boost exports by 20 per cent, while cutting container dwell time by just one day at Chattogram would increase exports by 7.4 per cent, Reaz said citing World Bank research.

He called for a comprehensive reform agenda built around eight priorities: activating and implementing the National Logistics Policy; transitioning to a landlord port model to attract private operators; fully operationalising the National Single Window for customs; accelerating the Matarbari Deep Sea Port and Bay Container Terminal projects; integrating road-rail-waterway multimodal networks; deploying artificial intelligence and digital cargo tracking systems; revising the port tariff structure on a performance-linked basis; and strengthening regulatory safeguards for foreign investment in strategic infrastructure.

Private sector participation, backed by strong legal and regulatory frameworks, is indispensable for Bangladesh’s port transformation he added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

The Government of India recently announced financial assistance under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0 to support stressed sectors, including textiles, as the country is assessing the cascading economic impact of the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict on lines similar to a Covid-19-like emergency situation. The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) has welcomed the move, describing it as a timely and much-needed liquidity support measure for the textile industry amid mounting geopolitical and trade uncertainties.

The revised scheme has been introduced at a time when the textile sector is facing rising operational and financial pressure due to disruptions linked to the West Asia crisis. Reflecting the resilience shown by the industry through improved PMI trends and export performance, the government has expanded the scheme with enhanced eligibility norms and a credit cap of up to ₹5000 million ($52.55 million) for stressed sectors.

The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) welcomed the Government of India’s ECLGS 5.0 scheme, calling it a timely liquidity support measure for the textile industry amid the ongoing West Asia crisis.
The scheme offers collateral-free loans, extended repayment tenure, and enhanced credit support to help textile firms manage rising raw material costs, logistics disruptions, and financial stress.

According to industry sources, the textile sector has been significantly impacted by the prevailing geopolitical tensions, particularly because the man-made fibre segment remains dependent on the Middle East region for critical raw materials. At the same time, exports of value-added textile products have come under pressure due to abnormally high logistics costs and changing global consumption patterns, with buyers increasingly shifting towards lower-cost products.

The government had earlier launched ECLGS in 2020 during the COVID-19 crisis to provide immediate liquidity support to MSMEs and business enterprises facing operational stress. The scheme played a key role in helping companies meet operational liabilities and sustain manufacturing activities during the pandemic period. SIMA noted that ECLGS 5.0 extends similar support at a time when global geopolitical disruptions are again straining industrial operations.

In a press release, SIMA Chairman Durai Palanisamy expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government for introducing the enhanced scheme. He said ECLGS 5.0 would provide critical liquidity support to businesses affected by the ongoing West Asia crisis and help the industry manage financial stress more effectively.

According to SIMA, the scheme covers both MSME and non-MSME sectors and offers loans with a repayment tenure of up to five years. Loan sanctions under the scheme will remain available until March 31, 2027, while borrowers will also benefit from a one-year moratorium on principal repayment.

The association highlighted that the scheme enables additional credit support of up to 20 per cent of the peak working capital as of the last quarter of the recently concluded fiscal 2025-26, subject to a maximum limit of ₹100 crore per borrower. The facility is fully collateral-free and does not carry any guarantee fee, making it highly accessible and beneficial for the textile industry.

Palanisamy pointed out that inadequate working capital has emerged as one of the biggest challenges for textile manufacturers, affecting their ability to maintain production capacity, retain workers, procure essential raw materials, and service existing bank loans. He further stated that ECLGS 5.0 would play a crucial role in stabilising production, safeguarding employment, and sustaining the textile industry’s contribution to exports and economic growth, especially at a time when raw cotton prices are witnessing abnormal and frequent fluctuations.

SIMA also emphasised that ECLGS 5.0, along with the TEEM scheme and the Mission for Cotton Productivity approved in the recent Union Budget with an outlay of ₹5,659.22 crore, would provide a strong boost to the long-term growth and competitiveness of the Indian textile industry in both domestic and international markets.

The association added that government initiatives related to export risk mitigation, logistics and trade facilitation, and the creation of new strategic markets through free trade agreements (FTAs) would help the textile sector maintain stability and competitiveness despite continuing geopolitical disruptions.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)