Textile industry in India | History, List, Future, Limitations

The textile industry in India is one of the largest sectors in the world with a huge raw material and textile manufacturing base. Our economy is mainly dependent on textile manufacturing and trade besides other major industries. About 27% of foreign exchange earnings are due to textile and apparel exports alone. The textile and apparel sector contributes about 14% to the industrial output and 3% to the country's gross domestic product. The textile industry contributes about 8% of the total excise revenue collection. Hence, the textile industry is as large as 21% of the total employment generated in the economy. About 35 million people are directly employed in textile manufacturing activities. Indirect employment, including manpower engaged in the production of agricultural raw materials such as cotton, may amount to about 60 million.

Textile industry in India

The textile industry in India has traditionally been, after agriculture, the only industry that has created large employment for both skilled and unskilled labor. The textile industry continues to be the second-largest employment-generating sector in India. It offers direct employment to more than 35 million people in the country. India is the world's second-largest textile and apparel exporter and exports are set to reach USD 44.4 billion in FY2022. According to the Ministry of Textiles, the share of textiles in total exports during April-July 2010 was 11.04%. In 2009–2010, the Indian textile industry was valued at US$55 billion, with 64% servicing domestic demand. In 2010, there were 2,500 textile weaving factories and 4,135 textile finishing factories all over India. According to AT Kearney's 'Retail Apparel Index', India was ranked as the fourth most promising market for apparel retailers in 2009. India is the second largest fiber producer. The country is the largest producer of cotton and jute in the world. India is also the second-largest producer of silk in the world. Other fibers produced in India include wool and man-made fibers.

History of the textile industry in India

India had a textile trade in the earlier century. Pieces of cotton from Gujarat have been found in tombs in Egypt, indicating the existence of Indian textile exports to Egypt during the medieval period. Indian silks were often exchanged for spices. In the late 17th and 18th centuries, there were large exports of Indian cotton to Western countries to meet the needs of European industries during the Industrial Revolution, in addition to domestic needs in Indian ordnance factories.

Until the 18th century, the Mughal Empire was the most important center of production in international trade. By 1750, India produced about 25% of the world's industrial output. The largest manufacturing industry in the Mughal Empire was textile production, particularly cotton textile production, including piece goods, calicoes, and muslins, unbleached and available in a variety of colors. The cotton textile industry accounted for a large part of the empire's international trade. Bengal accounted for 25% of the global textile trade in the early 18th century. In the 18th century, Bengal cotton textiles were the most important manufactured goods in world trade, used all over the world from America to Japan. The most important center of cotton production was the Bengal Subah province, especially around the capital Dhaka. As Karl Marx noted in 1853, the textile industry was a major component of economic income in the pre-colonial Indian economy, writing that "the hand-loom and the spinning-wheel, with their regular production of innumerable spinners and weavers, were the pivots of the structure of that society."

List of the textile industry in India

Sl no.	Company Name
1	A.K. Spintex Ltd
2	Aananda Lakshmi Spinning Mills Ltd
3	AARVEE DENIMS & EXPORTS LTD.
4	AARYA GLOBAL SHARES AND SECURITIES LTD.
5	ACIL Cotton Industries Limited
6	ADHUNIK SYNTHETICS LTD.
7	ADINATH TEXTILES LTD.
8	ADITYA SPINNERS LTD.
9	ADVANCE LIFESTYLES LTD.
10	AKAI IMPEX LTD.
11	AKM Lace and Embrotex Ltd
12	Akshar Spintex Ltd
13	ALKA INDIA LTD.
14	ALPS INDUSTRIES LTD.
15	AMARJOTHI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
16	AMBIKA COTTON MILLS LTD.
17	AMBIKA SILK MILLS LTD.
18	AMIT INTERNATIONAL LTD.
19	AMIT SPINNING INDUSTRIES LTD.
20	AMRAWORLD AGRICO LTD.
21	ANANT ROTOSPIN LTD.
22	Angel Fibers Ltd
23	ANJANI SYNTHETICS LTD.
24	APM INDUSTRIES LTD.
25	AREX INDUSTRIES LTD.
26	ARHAT INDUSTRIES LTD.
27	ARIHANT COTSYN LTD.
28	ARORA FIBRES LTD.
29	ARUN PROCESSORS LTD.
30	ARUNODAY MILLS LTD.
31	ARVIND LTD.
32	Asahi Industries Limited
33	ASHNOOR TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
34	ATLANTIC SPINNING & WEAVING MILLS LTD.
35	Axita Cotton Ltd
36	AYM Syntex Ltd
37	BANNARI AMMAN SPINNING MILLS LTD.
38	BANSWARA SYNTEX LTD.
39	BARODA RAYON CORPORATION LTD.
40	Bella Casa Fashion & Retail Ltd
41	BENGAL TEA & FABRICS LTD.
42	BETEX INDIA LTD.
43	BHILWARA SPINNERS LTD.
44	BHILWARA TECHNICAL TEXTILES LTD.
45	BINAYAK TEX PROCESSORS LTD.
46	BOMBAY DYEING & MFG.CO.LTD.
47	Chandni Textiles Engineering Ind. Ltd
48	CHESLIND TEXTILES LTD.
49	CHETAK SPINTEX LTD.
50	CHHABRA SPINNERS LTD.
51	CHITRADURGA SPINTEX LTD.
52	CITIZEN YARNS LTD.
53	Classic Filaments Ltd
54	CT COTTON YARN LTD.
55	DELTA POLYSTERS LTD.
56	DHANLAXMI FABRICS LTD.
57	DHAR TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
58	EASTERN SILK INDUSTRIES LTD.
59	Effingo Textile & Trading Limited
60	E-Land Apparel Limited
61	ESSJAY SYNTHETICS LTD.
62	EUREKA INDUSTRIES LTD.
63	EUROTEX INDUSTRIES & EXPORTS LTD.
64	Evergreen Textiles Limited
65	EVERLON SYNTHETICS LTD.
66	FILATEX FASHIONS LTD.
67	FIRST WINNER INDUSTRIES LTD.
68	FLORA TEXTILES LTD.
69	FUTURA POLYESTERS LTD.
70	GANGOTRI TEXTILES LTD.
71	GARDEN SILK MILLS LTD.
72	Ghushine Fintrrade Ocean Ltd
73	GINNI FILAMENTS LTD.
74	GIRNAR FIBRES LTD.
75	GLOBAL KNITFAB LTD.
76	GOKAK TEXTILES LTD.
77	GOLD MULTIFAB LTD.
78	GOLDWON TEXTILES LTD.
79	GTN TEXTILES LTD.
80	GUJARAT COTEX LTD.
81	GUJARAT FILAMENTS LTD.
82	Gujarat Hy-Spin Ltd
83	GUJARAT TEXSPIN LTD.
84	GUPTA SYNTHETICS LTD.
85	H.P. COTTON TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
86	HANIL ERA TEXTILES LTD.
87	HARI GOVIND INTERNATIONAL LTD.
88	Haria Apparels Ltd
89	Haryana Texprints (Overseas) Limited
90	HIMACHAL FIBRES LTD.
91	HIND SYNTEX LTD.
92	HINDOOSTAN SPINNING & WEAVING MILLS LTD.
93	HISAR SPINNING MILLS LTD.
94	HITESH TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
95	HYTONE TEXSTYLES LTD.
96	INDIA POLYSPIN LTD.
97	INDIAN CARD CLOTHING CO. LTD.
98	INDO RAMA SYNTHETICS (INDIA) LTD.
99	INTEGRAL KNIT CO. LTD.
100	INTERNATIONAL HOMETEX LTD.
101	JAGJANANI TEXTILES LTD.
102	JAI MATA INDUSTRIES LTD.
103	JAIDKA INDUSTRIES LTD.
104	JAIHIND SYNTHETICS LTD.
105	JANICE TEXTILES LTD.
106	JAY BHARAT FABRICS MILLS LTD.
107	K.C.TEXTILES LTD.
108	KAKATIYA TEXTILES LTD.
109	Kallam Textiles Ltd
110	KAMADGIRI FASHION LTD.
111	KAPIL COTEX LTD.
112	KAREEMS SILK INTERNATIONAL LTD.
113	KAREEMS SPUN SILK LTD.
114	KARNAVATI SPINNERS LTD.
115	KATARE SPINNING MILLS LTD.
116	KAVITA FABRICS LTD.
117	KAYTEE COTSYNTH INDUSTRIES LTD.
118	KESWANI SYNTHETICS INDUSTRIES LTD.
119	KG DENIM LTD.
120	KHATOR FIBRE & FABRICS LTD.
121	KIRAN SYNTEX LTD.
122	K-Lifestyle & Industries Limited
123	KONARK SYNTHETIC LTD.
124	KONGARAR INTEGRATED FIBRES LTD.
125	KRISHNA SYNTHETICS LTD.
126	KSL AND INDUSTRIES LTD.
127	L.D.TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD.
128	LAKHOTIA POLYESTERS (INDIA) LTD.
129	LAKSHMI MILLS COMPANY LTD.
130	LAMBODHARA TEXTILES LTD.
131	LOHIA POLYESTER LTD.
132	LOYAL TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
133	MAFATLAL INDUSTRIES LTD.
134	MAHAGANESH TEXPRO LTD.
135	MAHARAJA SHREE UMAID MILLS LTD.
136	MAIKAAL FIBRES LTD.
137	MALWA COTTON SPINNING MILLS LTD.
138	Manomay Tex India Ltd
139	MARIS SPINNERS LTD.
140	MAYA SPINNERS LTD.
141	MH MILLS & INDUSTRIES LTD.
142	MIKADO TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD.
143	MINAXI TEXTILES LTD.
144	MODERN DENIM LTD.
145	MODERN TERRY TOWELS LTD.
146	MOONBEAM INDUSTRIES LTD.
147	MORARJEE TEXTILES LTD.
148	MW UNITEXX LTD.
149	NACHMO KNITEX LTD.
150	NAHAR SPINNING MILLS LTD.
151	Nandan Denim Limited
152	NEPC TEXTILES LTD.
153	NITIN SPINNERS LTD.
154	OASIS TEXTILES LTD.
155	OMKAR OVERSEAS LTD.
156	OMNITEX INDUSTRIES (INDIA) LTD.
157	ORBIT EXPORTS LTD.
158	ORBIT POLYESTER LTD.
159	ORIENT SYNTEX LTD.
160	PADAM COTTON YARNS LTD.
161	PARAS PETROFILS LTD.
162	PARASRAMPURIA SYNTHETICS LTD.
163	PASARI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
164	PASUPATI SPG.& WVG.MILLS LTD.
165	PATSPIN INDIA LTD.
166	PBM POLYTEX LTD.
167	PEETI SECURITIES LTD.
168	Pincon Lifestyle Ltd
169	PIONEER EMBROIDERIES LTD.
170	POLYSPIN EXPORTS LTD.
171	Prakash Woollen & Synthetic Mills Ltd
172	PRANAVADITYA SPINNING MILLS LTD.
173	PREMIER SYNTHETICS LTD.
174	PRESSURE SENSITIVE SYSTEMS (INDIA) LTD.
175	PRIYADARSHINI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
176	PUNJAB FIBRES LTD.
177	PUNJAB WOOLCOMBERS LTD.
178	R&B Denims Ltd
179	RADHIKA SPINNING MILLS LTD.
180	RAGHUVIR SYNTHETICS LTD.
181	RAINBOW DENIM LTD.
182	Raj Rayon Industries Limited.
183	RAJASTHAN PETRO SYNTHETICS LTD.
184	RAJKAMAL SYNTHETICS LTD.
185	RAJLAXMI INDUSTRIES LTD.
186	RAVI SPINNING LTD.
187	RAYMOND LTD.
188	RELIANCE CHEMOTEX INDUSTRIES LTD.
189	RIBA TEXTILES LTD.
190	RUNEECHA TEXTILES LTD.
191	SAGAR SILK INDUSTRIES LTD.
192	SAJJAN TEXTILES MILLS LTD.
193	SALEM TEXTILES LTD.
194	SALONA COTSPIN LTD.
195	SAMBANDAM SPINNING MILLS LTD.
196	SAMRAT SPINNERS LTD.
197	SANGHI POLYESTERS LTD.
198	SANRHEA TECHNICAL TEXTILES LTD.
199	SANTOSH FINE-FAB LTD.
200	SANTOWIN CORPORATION LTD.
201	SARITA SOFTWARE & INDUSTRIES LTD.
202	SARLA PERFORMANCE FIBERS LTD.
203	SEASONS TEXTILES LTD.
204	SEL MANUFACTURING COMPANY LTD.
205	Shahlon Silk Industries Ltd
206	SHAMKEN MULTIFAB LTD.
207	SHAMKEN SPINNERS LTD.
208	SHARAD FIBRES & YARN PROCESSORS LTD.
209	SHEENA TEXTILES LTD.
210	SHEKHAWATI POLY-YARN LTD.
211	Sheshadri Industries Ltd
212	Shiva Mills Ltd
213	SHIVA TEXYARN LTD.
214	Shree Bhavya Fabrics Ltd
215	SHREE GANESH KNIT (INDIA) LTD.
216	SHREE MANUFACTURING CO.LTD.
217	SHRI DINESH MILLS LTD.
218	SHRI LAKSHMI COTSYN LTD.
219	SHRUTI SYNTHETIC LTD.
220	Shubham Polyspin Ltd
221	SILKTEX LTD.
222	Silverton Spinners Limited
223	SIMCO INDUSTRIES LTD.
224	SIMPLEX MILLS COMPANY LTD.
225	SINTEX INDUSTRIES LTD.
226	SOMA TEXTILES & INDUSTRIES LTD.
227	SONU SYNTHETICS LTD.
228	SPENTEX INDUSTRIES LTD.
229	Sportking India Ltd
230	SREE JAYALAKSHMI AUTOSPIN LTD.
231	SRI GANAPATHY MILLS CO. LTD.
232	SRI JAYALAKSHMI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
233	SRI LAKSHMI SARASWATHI TEXTILES (ARNI) LTD.
234	SRI MALINI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
235	SRI NACHAMMAI COTTON MILLS LTD.
236	STERLING SPINNERS LTD.
237	SUBHAKTI TEXTILES LTD.
238	SUBHASH SILK MILLS LTD.
239	Suryaa Knitwear Ltd
240	SUMEET INDUSTRIES LTD.-$
241	SUNCITY SYNTHETICS LTD.
242	SUPER SPINNING MILLS LTD.
243	SUPER SYNCOTEX (INDIA) LTD.
244	SUPER TEX INDUSTRIES LTD.
245	SUPREME TEX MART LTD.
246	SURAT TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
247	SURYAAMBA SPINNING MILLS LTD.
248	SURYAJYOTI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
249	SURYALAKSHMI COTTON MILLS LTD.
250	SURYALATA SPINNING MILLS LTD.
251	SURYAVANSHI SPINNING MILLS LTD.
252	SUTLEJ TEXTILES & INDUSTRIES LTD.
253	TAI CHONBANG TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD.
254	TAMARAI MILLS LTD.
255	TAMILNADU JAIBHARAT MILLS LTD.
256	TERRYFAB (INDIA) LTD.
257	TERRYGOLD (INDIA) LTD.
258	THAMBBI MODERN SPINNING MILLS LTD.
259	TIRUPATI FIBRES & INDUSTRIES LTD.
260	TUNI TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
261	UMA MAHESHWARI MILLS LTD.
262	UNIMIN INDIA LTD.
263	UNIROYAL INDUSTRIES LTD.
264	UNITED LEASING & INDUSTRIES LTD.
265	UNITED TEXTILES LTD.
266	UNIWORTH LTD.
267	UNIWORTH SECURITIES LTD.
268	UNIWORTH TEXTILES LTD.
269	VALSON INDUSTRIES LTD.
270	VANASTHALI TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD.
271	VANDANA KNITWEAR LTD.
272	VARDHMAN POLYTEX LTD.
273	VARDHMAN TEXTILES LTD.
274	VENTURA TEXTILES LTD.
275	VICTORIA MILLS LTD.
276	VIJAY KUMAR MILLS LTD.
277	VIPPY SPINPRO LTD.
278	VISAGAR POLYTEX LTD.
279	Vishal Fabrics Ltd
280	VOGUE TEXTILES LTD.
281	VOLANT TEXTILE MILLS LTD.
282	VOLVO TERRY INDUSTRIES LTD.
283	VTM LTD.
284	VTX INDUSTRIES LIMITED
285	WELSPUN INDIA LTD.
286	WESTERN INDIA COTTONS LTD.
287	WINSOME TEXTILE INDUSTRIES LTD.
288	WOOLWAYS (INDIA) LTD.
289	YOGI POLYESTERS LTD.
290	ZENITH FIBRES LTD.

Future of the textile industry in India

The textile industry in India is especially strong due to its wide variety of natural and synthetic fibers and yarns. Compared to sectors like heavy machinery, vehicles, etc., the textile industry in India is technologically advanced and capital-intensive. As the trend of industrialization in trade has prevailed in the consumer goods sector and labor-intensive industries, there is a lot of scope in the textile sector.

India is likely to be the second most attractive market by 2025, contributing up to US$ 121 billion, while China is estimated to be the most attractive market, contributing up to US$ 378 billion. In 2017-2018, India has one of the fastest-growing economies with a GDP growth rate of 7.2%. This increases the spending power of the general public and stimulates the demand for textile sector products. This expansion creates a vast array of manufacturing capacity for various items that can be shipped within and outside India. Also, India has one of the most diverse textile industries, with hand-woven textiles at one end and capital-intensive mills at the other, resulting in vast potential within the textile industry.

Limitations of the Indian Textile Industry

i. For a long time, government policies only supported and subsidized small and medium enterprises. Therefore, to maximize such benefits, several textile players have not scaled up.

ii. Geopolitical tensions put pressure on the smooth functioning of every industry, with the textile sector being the most affected, in short, medium, and long-term growth.

iii. India trades in cotton-based textiles. The high volatility of cotton prices adversely affects the entire supply chain.

iv. Government policies to boost the textile industry in China and Vietnam are more favorable than in India.

v. A deflationary economy created a constant demand for rising labor wages, making Indian textiles less competitive in the world market.

vi. Unskilled labor force and reluctance to adopt modern technology.

vii. Lack of knowledge about the demand for modern garments makes the sector underdeveloped.

viii. Electricity in India is relatively expensive compared to other countries like Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and Turkey.

ix. The Indian industry has not looked at segments like high-value fashion, activewear, sportswear, and performance wear while the focus is mainly limited to the low-value casual wear segment.

x. India lacks membership in trade agreements, leading to restricted access to key markets and sometimes making industries uncompetitive. For example, Bangladesh has gained duty-free access to more than 50 countries by signing more free trade agreements.