PM Mitra textile parks: After Modi’s promise, now Telangana excluded

According to information available now, the Textile Ministry has reportedly cancelled the park for the State even after Prime Minister Modi promise to Telangana

Hyderabad: Barely three days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that one out of the seven mega textile parks being set up across the country would be in Telangana, the Union Textile Ministry has reportedly excluded Telangana from the list.

Modi had first announced the PM MITRA (Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel) scheme a month ago, and according to the official information on the announcement, one of the mega textile parks was to be set up in Telangana. However, according to information available now, the Textile Ministry has reportedly cancelled the park for the State.

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Recently, during a video conference with officials, the Textile Ministry had stated that the Kakatiya Mega Textile Park (KMTP) at Warangal does not meet the PM MITRA scheme’s stipulated norms. The State, which had been repeatedly requesting the Centre for a mega textile park, had set up the KMTP in 2017 and had managed to draw major investments, including from global majors. All through the State’s efforts to bolster the textile industry through the KMTP, the Centre did not come forward to help the endeavour. The State, according to officials, was hoping that KMTP would be included in the PM MITRA scheme and that the Centre would extend financial assistance to the park in Warangal.

It is learnt that the Textile Ministry raised a few issues about the mega textile park and has now set aside the project in Telangana. The Centre’s assistance for these parks — categorised into Greenfield and Brownfield — was to be 51 per cent and the remaining would have to be borne by the respective State governments.

But, so far there was no information and clarity as to which category the union government had planned to allot the park to Telangana. To make matters worse, the union Textiles Ministry senior officials during the video conference held a few days back said the KMTP was unlikely to get grants under the PM MITRA scheme. The reasons cited were that KMTP did not meet the norms stipulated under the scheme, a senior official from Telangana said, adding that there was no possibility to amend the rules for inclusion of KMTP under the scheme.