Textile Industry

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An analysis of the trade competitiveness of India’s man-made fibre-based textile and apparel sector, based on the Index of Revealed Comparative Advantage, Trade Intensity Index, and Export Similarity Index, for the period 2010–19, revealed that India has a significant advantage in man-made yarns, fibres and technical textiles. A survey of the top 10 export markets indicates that India enjoys a comparative advantage in 53 of 319 products. India has a high trade intensity with the United States and United Kingdom in fabric, apparels, made-ups (including carpets), and technical textiles (including non-woven). Further, India does not face high export competition in this sector.

An econometric analysis has been done to identify the causes of occurrences of disputes, strikes, and lockouts in the Indian textile industry. The relative shares of strikes and lockouts in the pre- and post-liberalisation periods for both the public and the private sectors have been assessed and analysed. The incidence and impact of these disputes have also been explored, revealing significant details about the changes in the relationship of disputes, strikes, and lockouts with their determinants in the textile industry.

Bhiwandi, the power loom town close to Mumbai, is reeling from several challenges that threaten its existence. Labourers, power loom owners and local people, predominantly Muslims, are struggling to cope with the financial and logistical problems of the power loom industry. 

From the perspective of Mumbai's economy, the controversy over developing land of the closed textile mills is linked to the decline of manufacturing and the rise of services. This has pushed skilled labour into the informal sector resulting in the dramatic reduction of their income, which has also pushed them into informal housing. How should a city cope with such a process in terms of the impact on the economy, employment, land use and environment?