Goyal was speaking on the sidelines of the news trade agreements in the textile sector between India, Australia and the UAE
The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Piyush Goyal said that new Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreements with Australia and the UAE would open infinite opportunities for the textile industry. He said that Indian textile exports to Australia and the UAE will now face zero duty and expressed confidence that soon Europe, Canada, the UK and GCC countries would also welcome Indian textile exports at zero duty.
Goyal was delivering the Keynote address at the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the ‘Confederation of Indian Textile Industry- Cotton Development and Research Association’ (CITI- CDRA) in New Delhi today. The Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu was the chief guest at the celebration.
The minister mentioned that trade agreements would help in increasing exports from labour-intensive industries. He added that India must also be open to receiving new technology, rare minerals, raw materials which are in short supply in India etc. from the world at reasonable costs. This will only increase our production, productivity and quality, which in turn will increase demand for our products all over the world, he said.
Goyal also said that the Indian textile industry has the potential to achieve $100 billion in exports by 2030.
He applauded CITI-CDRA for working towards developing a robust cotton ecosystem by directly engaging about 90,000 cotton farmers. The minister observed that more than just fibre, cotton has been an integral part of Indian culture, lifestyle and tradition.
Goyal called upon Indian cultivators to adopt new technologies and global best farm practices. He spoke of the AI technology that is enabling farmers in Australia to control spraying operations, as the cotton crop is sensitive to spraying through data-driven decision making.
