Industry body urges targeted support to boost competitiveness and jobs.
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) has welcomed the Economic Survey 2025–26, saying it provides a clear roadmap to sustain India’s growth momentum despite persistent global challenges. The industry body said it now looks to the forthcoming Union Budget to translate the Survey’s vision into focused policy and fiscal support for the textile and apparel sector.
The Economic Survey raised India’s growth outlook and underlined the need for sustained reforms across five key pillars—Ease of Doing Business, R&D and innovation, skilling, infrastructure and logistics, and scaling up MSMEs—to position industry as a long-term growth driver.
Commenting on the Survey, Ashwin Chandran, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, said: “The Economic Survey for the financial year 2025-26 clearly shows the path that will achieve the twin objectives of a Viksit Bharat (developed India) and improve the quality of life of the Indian people, who make up almost 18 per cent of the global population.”
He added that the Survey’s emphasis on global trade dynamics, manufacturing and export competitiveness, easier credit access for MSMEs, skill development and innovation holds particular relevance for textiles and apparel as the industry works to futureproof itself.
According to CITI, a growth-oriented Union Budget aligned with the Survey’s recommendations could strengthen India’s position as a globally competitive and sustainable hub for textiles and apparel, while supporting inclusive growth and employment generation. India has set a target of building a $350 billion textile and apparel industry by 2030, including exports of $100 billion.
“In the Budget context, the textile and apparel industry expects it to include specific measures that will enhance the global competitiveness and innovation capacity of the sector,” Chandran said, adding that improved access to raw materials, stronger support systems for MSMEs and affordable credit will be critical, along with measures to advance sustainability.
The sector, India’s second-largest employer after agriculture and a major contributor to exports and GDP, has been impacted by the 50 percent US tariff on Indian goods effective August 27, 2025. The US remains India’s largest export market for textiles and apparel, accounting for about $11 billion, or nearly 28 percent of total exports in FY2024–25.