‘Bharat Park’ to be Established in UAE to Showcase Indian Goods
08 January 2024: To boost trade and promote Indian products on a global scale, Indian government is set to establish ‘Bharat Park’, an exclusive trade zone in United Arab Emirates (UAE). The park will feature a showroom and warehouse where goods made in India will be displayed and stored for international buyers.
Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Textiles and Commerce, emphasised that this initiative will enable other countries to easily purchase Indian goods, with secured payment processing in UAE.
During the Export Awards function of The Synthetic and Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) Goyal highlighted role of man-made fibre textiles in the future of the Indian textile industry. He emphasised the limitations faced in ensuring a sufficient supply of cotton to meet the growing demand and urged the industry to leverage free trade agreements with countries such as Japan, Australia, UAE and South Korea.
However, Bhadresh Dodhia, Chairman of SRTEPC, expressed concerns over the decline in exports of man-made fibre textiles, which witnessed a drop of 9% in the first seven months of this fiscal year. Despite this setback, Dodhia remains optimistic that textile exports will exceed $6 billion this fiscal year, and technical textile shipments will surpass $3 billion.
To overcome roadblocks, SRTEPC has requested the government to address issues such as levying an identical GST rate throughout the value chain of man-made fibre textiles and rectifying the current inverted duty structure. Dodhia also urged the government to include the entire textile and clothing value chain under the Interest Equalization Scheme.
Establishment of ‘Bharat Park’ in UAE and the government’s efforts to streamline the textile industry are expected to provide a significant boost to Indian exports and further strengthen the country’s position in the global market.