Hinting that the textile industry is expected to have a uniform GST rate, Union Textile Minister Smriti Irani today said that a conference on GST will be held soon to decide the issue.

Responding to the pleas at a meeting of textile industries associations and stakeholders here, for fixing five per cent rate, the lowest slab for the textile industry, Irani assured them that there would be neutrality in the rate. However, a conference on GST to be held soon, will decide the rate, she said.

Later talking to reporters after attending the Parliamentary Consultative Committee meeting on development of power loom sector, she said that the Government has launched PowerTex India on April 1 for the benefit of power loom industry.

Stating that the objective of this unique scheme with a component of a in-situ upgradation was to provide financial assistance to economically weaker low-end power loom units to upgrade from plain to semi automatic/shuttless looms,
By this the units can improve quality and productivity of the fabrics being produced and enable them to face the competition in domestic and international markets.

Irani said that the comprehensive scheme has Solar Energy Scheme providing 50 per cent financial assistance/capital subsidy for general and 75 to 90 per cent for SC/ST persons. The budgetary allocation for the power sector has gone up from Rs.52 crore in 2015-16 to Rs.110 crore in 20160-17 and Rs.166 crore this fiscal, she said.

Later briefing reporters the deliberations of the meeting, Textile Commissioner, Kavita Gupta said that responding to the appeals to tide over the crisis of frequent fluctuation of yarn prices, the Minister has said that her ministry has come out with a Yarn Bank Scheme at providing interest free corpus fund.

By this, 11 members can form a Special Purpose Vehicle consortium for which the Government will provide Rs.2 crores and a matching amount should be invested by the stakeholders and stock the yarn for use at the time of crisis, Gupta said.

When asked about the much awaited National Textile Policy, the official said that it was in the final stage and will be announced shortly.

To a question on textile exports, Gupta said that it remained stable at $40 bn, with increase in the exports of ready made garments, with Tamil Nadu contributing 40 per cent.