Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman attends TEXPROCIL Annual Awards as Council highlights export growth, employment and new trade initiatives

The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) held its Annual Awards Function at the Leela Hotel, recognising the contribution of textile exporters across multiple categories. The event was attended by Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon’ble Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, as Chief Guest, along with Textile Commissioner Smt. Vrunda Desai. The programme also featured the launch of the Advanced Certificate Program in International Trade (ACPIT).

The Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL), established in 1954 for the promotion of cotton textile exports from India, organised its Annual Awards Function at the Leela Hotel to recognise the performance of member exporters across different categories, including the Platinum Trophy for the highest global exports.

The Council also recognised companies generating significant employment in the textile sector, acknowledging the labour-intensive nature of the industry. New award categories for E-commerce, ESG, and Innovation were introduced this year.

Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Hon’ble Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, attended the function as the Chief Guest. Textile Commissioner Smt. Vrunda Desai was also present during the event.

In his opening remarks, TEXPROCIL Chairman Shri Vijay Agarwal stated that the Council’s 2,000 members contribute exports valued at nearly US$ 11 billion, while the wider cotton textile ecosystem supports around 35 million jobs directly and indirectly.

He also noted that TEXPROCIL has been entrusted with promoting the Indian cotton brand “Kasturi Cotton” through initiatives related to branding, certification and traceability.

The Chairman acknowledged the Government of India and the Ministry of Finance for extending support to the industry during global disruptions since 2020, including the COVID pandemic, tariff escalations and geopolitical conflicts. He referred to measures such as the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat package, ECLGS, MSME support initiatives, liquidity support and trade facilitation measures.

Shri Vijay Agarwal further welcomed initiatives announced in the Union Budget 2025–26 and Union Budget 2026–27, including the Export Promotion Mission, TEEM Scheme and Tex Eco Initiative. According to him, these measures are expected to support competitiveness, sustainability, modernization and employment generation within the textile sector.

He added that TEXPROCIL continues to assist exporters, particularly MSMEs, through stakeholder consultations, capacity-building programmes and awareness initiatives related to trade facilitation and digital platforms.

Referring to recently concluded Free Trade Agreements, the Chairman stated that Indian textiles are positioned to strengthen their role as a global sourcing destination. He also highlighted the requirement for continued policy support in areas including raw material availability at international prices, remission of embedded taxes and levies, export finance accessibility and logistics efficiency to help the industry target a US$ 350 billion textile market, including exports worth US$ 100 billion by 2030.

During her address, Textile Commissioner Smt. Vrunda Desai thanked the Hon’ble Finance Minister for announcing schemes for the textile sector in the recent budget, including the Textile Expansion and Employment Scheme, National Fibre Scheme, Tex-Eco Initiative and Samarth 2.0.

She also highlighted the District led Textiles Transformation initiative of the Ministry, which focuses on developing textile districts into globally competitive manufacturing and export hubs through local strengths, MSME ecosystems, cluster capabilities and traditional skills.

Smt. Desai further referred to initiatives including PM MITRA Parks, the Production Linked Incentive Scheme, National Technical Textiles Mission, sustainability and traceability programmes, quality improvement measures and modernization support aimed at improving India’s competitiveness across the textile value chain.

She concluded by stating that the Ministry of Textiles remains committed to supporting the modernization and growth of the industry.

During the event, TEXPROCIL also launched the Advanced Certificate Program in International Trade (ACPIT) through the Hon’ble Finance Minister. According to the Council, the programme has been designed as a structured certification initiative aligned with Government schemes and policy measures focused on strengthening India’s export ecosystem.

The awards were later presented by the Chief Guest during the ceremony.

The event concluded with a Vote of Thanks proposed by Mr Ravi Sam, Vice Chairman of TEXPROCIL.