The Karur Textile Manufacturers and Exporters Association (KTMEA) has urged the Union and the State governments to take steps to rescue the textile industry from the crisis caused by the war in West Asia.

A resolution passed at the meeting of the members of the association held on Saturday said the industry was facing a severe crisis for various reasons. The sharp increase in price of raw materials, cascading effect on prices in the wake of geopolitical tensions, and the rising labour cost were among the main reasons. The prices of raw material required for textile manufacturing had increased by 30% to 60% in the past few months. The geopolitical tensions between the United States, Israel, and Iran had severely affected global trade and international shipping. As a result, the prices of many essential materials required for textile manufacturing — including petroleum-based products such as polyester, chemicals used in dyeing industries, polythene, and packing materials — had witnessed sudden and steep increases. There was an urgent need for the Union and State governments to step in to solve the crisis.

The meeting chaired by its president P. Gopalakrishnan said delays in international shipping and shortages in imported goods had significantly increased the costs of dyeing, printing, and other job-work processes. The increase in cotton yarn prices in India by 30% to 40% had come as a major shock to the textile industry. Even though India is one of the leading producers of cotton, the present increase in cotton yarn prices appears to be artificial and without any justified reason. It is disappointing that the Union government had not taken adequate steps to control the price of cotton yarn, which was the lifeline of the Indian textile industry.

Similarly, the association said that prices of recycled cotton and polyester blended yarn, which were widely used in the Karur textile sector, had increased by 10% to 20%. Along with this, labour shortage had emerged as one of the biggest challenges for the textile industry. “If this situation continues, it could severely affect the operations of the Karur textile industry and create a major negative impact on export growth and employment opportunities,” the association said. It urged the Union and State governments to come up with a support scheme to rescue the industry besides taking steps to ensure the stability in raw material prices.