A Taiwanese footwear manufacturing firm is likely to invest up to $100 million for setting up a manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu, according to the Council for Leather Exports (CLE), whose chairman P R Aqeel Ahmed recently said the unit would employ 25,000 to 50,000 people in the next two years. The company evinced interest following an invitation by CLE.
The state government would provide all support to the company so that it can start work at the earliest, he was quoted as saying by a news agency.
The central government’s move to increase import duty on footwear will help the domestic industry and exporters in the leather sector, he said.
Ahmed had said a few days back that four new clusters with plug-and-play model factories for leather products manufacturing will be set up in Tamil Nadu. CLE expects a lot of foreign direct investment (FDI) to come to Tamil Nadu.
The leather sector’s exports from India stand at around $6 billion, of which Europe accounts for about 70 per cent. The sector employs around 42 lakh people.
